New Year's Eve
by awesomegurl68
Summary: This story takes place after the events in "New Year's Revelations." New chapter added!
1. Chapter 1

Sue flopped down on her bed and buried her face into her pillow. "I can't believe this keeps happening." She muttered to herself. At that time, Frankie came into the room and sat down at the foot of the bed. "If you would have seen Sean's face when Aiden kissed you, you'd have your answer about whether or not he likes you." she said to her daughter. "I should have gone after him, but I didn't want to run out on Aiden either after he came here to surprise me. I don't even know how he found out about the party in the first place. This is probably my fault for kissing someone else when I'm sort of seeing someone already, even if it isn't very serious with Aiden. We've only been out a few times." Sue said. "What are you going to do?" Frankie asked. "I don't know. I need to break it off with Aiden. It's not fair to him if I string him along when I'm really interested in Sean. I think I just want to go back to my apartment so I can have some time alone. No offense...I just need to get away for a while." Sue said. Frankie hugged Sue and smiled. "I'll help you pack your things." Frankie said.

Sean quietly sat in his room at his parent's house after storming out of the Heck's New Year's Eve party. He always knew he had a thing for Sue, but seeing her kiss someone else really upset him, confirming his feelings were stronger than he even knew. "Why didn't I just tell her the truth?" he wondered to himself. Up until Christmas Eve, he never knew that there was even a possibility that Sue liked him too. The kiss that they shared on Christmas Eve felt very real to him, and yet neither of them had the courage to talk about what had happened. Sean was upset with himself for not taking his chance to tell Sue how he felt at the New Year's Eve party. He didn't intend to blurt it out to Axl who just happened to be standing on the porch that night. At the same time, he was glad that someone knew the truth. Nancy Donahue came into Sean's room with a plate of chocolate chip cookies. "Sean, honey, are you okay? Why did you leave the party so soon?" she asked her son. "Hmm? Oh. No thanks, Mom, I'm not hungry." He told her. No one was able to say no to her famous chocolate chip cookies, so this really had her concerned. "Tell me what's going on? I already told you that we signed you up with a tutor to help boost those grades up." Nancy said. "It's not that." Sean said and then sighed. "I guess I should just tell you. I like Sue. I mean, I really like her and I have for a long time. I don't know if she likes me though. Tonight I was finally going to tell her and I never got a chance. Every time I am about to tell her, something comes up." He continued. "Wow, I had no idea...but I'm so happy. Sue is so sweet and you two would be so cute together. How long has this been going on?" Nancy asked. "I don't know," he said. "...I guess I've always had a thing for her, but didn't think much about it until last year. Remember when I drove to East Indy to surprise her and take her to the ball when I thought she didn't have a date? I was actually pretty upset that she already had a date...and I wanted to tell her how I felt at that moment but I didn't want to cause any trouble." Sean continued. "The ball?" Nancy asked. "Wait a minute. Ohhh...that makes so much sense now. I remember that night. Sue pulled up to the house in a hurry in the Winnebago and she was all dressed up. She was looking for you but you were already gone. I had no idea that..." Sean cut her off. "She what? She was here?" He questioned. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I didn't know what it was about." She said. "I have to go." Sean said in a hurry and ran out the door.

Sean ran across the street to the Heck's house and went inside without knocking. The New Year's Eve party was still going on and he didn't want to waste any more time. He frantically looked around the room and didn't see Sue. Frankie came around the corner and saw Sean. Sean nervously smiled at Frankie and approached her. "Hi Mrs. Heck. I need to talk to Sue, it's really important." He said. "Oh no. I'm so sorry, Sean. She actually just left to go back to her apartment. She was pretty upset about tonight." Frankie said. "She was?" Sean asked and then smiled. He realized that the smile was inappropriate and quickly returned to having a serious face. "You do know how she...umm..no, it's not my place to say anything." Frankie said. "Thanks, Mrs. Heck." Sean said quickly, patted her on the shoulder and left the house. Sean ran back across the street and got into his car. He took a deep breath before putting his keys into the ignition. "It's go time." He said to himself before starting the drive to East Indy.

Sue was at her apartment unpacking her luggage. Lexie was spending the school break with her family so Sue had the apartment to herself for the first time in a long time. It wasn't common for her to still be awake in the middle of the night, but there was no where to be in the morning and besides, her mind was filled with racing thoughts. After all, it was still New Year's and practically everyone stays awake late anyway. Knowing this, it still came as a shock when there was a light knocking at her door at 2am. She quickly went to the door and slowly opened it. "Oh, hi..." Sue said. "What are you doing here?" She asked. Aiden stood on the other side of the door. "I couldn't sleep and thought you might still be up. Do you want to watch a movie or something?" He asked. "Ummm...sure...but there's something we need to..." Aiden walked inside and went over to the stack of DVDs. "How about this one?" He asked while holding up a DVD. He popped it into the DVD player before she had a chance to reply and he sat down on the couch. "Okay..." She replied before sitting down on the opposite end of the couch. "What are you doing all the way over th.." He started before Sue jumped up from the couch. "POPCORN!" She shouted nervously and ran over to the pantry. She opened the door and stepped inside for a minute. "What are you doing?" She whispered to herself before grabbing a bag of popcorn and tossing it in the microwave. Aiden looked over at her and shrugged his shoulders before turning back toward the TV. At that time, there was another knock at the front door. "What the..." Sue asked to herself before walking to the door. She opened it and couldn't believe her eyes. Sean stood in the hallway holding a small stuffed Penguin and a bottle of sparkling grape juice. "Hey, Suzy-Q!" He smiled at her with a typical giant Donahue smile? "I hope I didn't wake you, I know it's late and I should have called first but I just wanted to surprise you and I really think we should ta.." Sean said before being interrupted. "What's going on?" Aiden asked as he walked up to the door and stood next to Sue. Sean's smile quickly disappeared and the stuffed Penguin fell to the floor with a squeak. Sue was still standing at the door in shock. "Um...I...ummm.." she stammered. Sean stood at the door and it was hard to tell exactly what he was feeling at that moment. "Sue? Who is this?" Aiden asked. "Umm...this is...Sean Donahue. Our families live near each other and we're close friends. He goes to St. Matthew's next door." She said, while leaving out the part about how 'close' they actually were. He eyes quickly shifted back and forth between the two guys. "Nice to meet you buddy...but it's pretty late. Maybe you should come back tomorrow." Aiden suggested and then closed the door in Sean's face. "Aiden!" Sue shouted. "What?" Aiden responded while going back to the couch. Sue opened the door to apologize but Sean was no longer standing there. The penguin and the bottle of sparking grape juice were all that remained in the hallway. "No..." Sue said to herself as a tear rolled down her face. She slowly closed the door and turned toward Aiden. "We need to talk." She said to him.

"You kissed him?" Aiden asked quietly. Sue nodded. "I'm sorry. I know that it isn't right to do that to you but I just...it's always been him." She said and then looked down at the floor. "I should be mad at you...but I'm not." Aiden started. "We've only been going out for a few weeks." He said and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry I kicked him out. I should probably go." He continued and then stood up and walked to the door. "See you around campus?" he asked before opening the door. "Okay." She replied and then closed the door behind him. She slid down to the floor and put her head on her knees. "What a night." She murmured to herself. She got back up and walked over to the kitchen where the popcorn had still been sitting, untouched. She ate a piece and spit it out. "Ugh, cold popcorn." She poured it into a plastic bag and tossed it into the trash can. Suddenly, there was another knock on the door followed by the sound of a key turning to unlock the deadbolt. The door began to open and a familiar face appeared. Axl stepped into the apartment and waved at Sue. She waved back at him with a confused look on her face.

"What are you doing here?" Sue asked her brother. He was the last person she expected to see tonight. Over the years, Sue and Axl did little more than argue but ever since starting college, they started to have a better relationship. He had spent time with her on campus before she had made new friends when first arriving at school, he invited her to parties, and he even escorted her to the ball after she had unsuccessfully tried to reach Sean who had asked her earlier that night. Now that he was dating her roommate, Lexie, he spent a lot of his time at her apartment, although it was still unusual for him to show up without Lexie being there. "Oh, you know, spending the night at home on New Year's is lame. I wanted to get out of the house and away from the parents if you know what I mean." He said. Sue gave a half smile and nod. "Also, Mom told me what happened and I thought you should know something." He continued. Sue raised her eyebrow and looked confused. "Do you remember how you told me that Lexie had a crush on me? Even though it was an accident...I thought I owed you one." He started. "I saw Sean leaving the party tonight." Sue suddenly looked interested once she heard Sean's name. Axl continued. "He told me that he has liked you for a long time and doesn't know how you feel...although it's all just sooooo obvious." He rolled his eyes at his sister. Sue's jaw hit the floor. "He TOLD you that. Oh. My. Gosh. He was here and I didn't...and Aiden...and I...and?" Sue yelled. "Yo, chill out. I've got it covered." Axl said while poking his sister in the arm. Axl walked over to the door, opened it, and turned around to wink at Sue. He then stepped out of the door without closing it. "See ya, later." He said. On the other side of the door stood Sean.

Sue's mouth was wide open and she looked at him from across the room in disbelief. Sean was still standing in the doorway with an awkward smile. It was close to dawn and it was obvious that both of them were very tired. Sue slowly walked over to the door and never stopped making eye contact with Sean. "Sean..." She said quietly. "Sue." He replied. "Do you want to come in?" She asked. Sean smiled and nodded before stepping inside the apartment. He was once again holding the bottle of sparkling grape juice and the stuffed penguin. "I just have one question." She started. "What's with all of that?" She asked while pointing at the items he was holding. He chuckled. "There's only one store that's open in the middle of the night and it was the best I could do." He said. Sean set the items down on the kitchen counter and took off his jacket. Sue was sitting on the couch and motioned for him to come and sit down. Sean walked over to the couch and sat down next to Sue. "I broke up with Aiden." She said quickly. Sean smiled. "I know. I saw him leaving. I never left, you know. I was sitting in my car when Axl showed up." He said. "Really?" She asked and he nodded. "Sue. I don't want to mess this up again. I'm absolutely crazy about you. I just never knew how to say it. I mean, we've known each other forever and I really just need to know how you feel." He said. Sue had a huge smile on her face. "Sean, I..." She started before throwing her arms around him and pressing her lips to his. Sean gasped and started running his hands through her hair while kissing her gently at first, but then more passionately. Sean pulled away. "Wait. Just to be clear..." He started. "Yes, I like you too." She laughed. Sean smiled and began kissing her again. Several hours later, Sean and Sue fell asleep with smiles on their faces while still holding each other on the couch.


	2. Chapter 2

It was just after noon and sunlight filled the living room of Sue's apartment. Sean and Sue were still entwined on the couch after a long night. Sue's head was resting on Sean's shoulder and Sean, at some point, had grabbed a decorative throw pillow to tuck behind his head. Sean's eyes began to open and he squinted his eyes in the bright light, confused for a brief moment about where he was, but he quickly remembered. He slowly looked down to see Sue curled up next to him and he smiled. Her hair was a knotted mess, her once neat clothes were crumpled, and there was a small puddle of drool on his shoulder. He chuckled a little at the sight of it and Sue began to stir. Her eyes fluttered open and she saw Sean smiling at her, but quickly noticed the moisture around her mouth. She had an embarrased look on her face and wiped away the evidence as fast as she could. Sean just laughed and casually brushed a stray hair out of Sue's face.

"Good morning, Suzy Q." Sean said gently. His voice was still a little hoarse from just waking up. Sue was now alert and the events of the previous night were rushing through her head.

"You're still here?" She questioned out loud but had meant to say that in her head.

"Of course I'm still here." He replied, a little confused at the question. "Where else would I be?" He said with a smile.

"I didn't mean it like that." Sue softly chuckled. "I just..."

"I'm sorry, I hope I didn't come across too strong, and staying overnight was...we just fell asleep is all. I didn't mean to..." He said.

"No, no, no.." Sue interrupted. "I just can't believe this is finally happening." She said with a smile. She leaned up and placed her hand on his chest. Sean smiled at her, gave her a quick kiss on her forehead and pulled her in for a hug.

After pulling apart from their hug, Sue looked down at herself and noticed how disheveled she looked and then she got up from the couch. Sean sat up and was just as disheveled. He began to smooth out the wrinkles in his button down shirt, but realized it was a lost cause and quickly gave up. His hair was mostly the same as the previous night, thanks to his hair gel.

"I look like a hot mess." Sue said and Sean laughed. "I think I need to take a quick shower and change. It's okay if you don't feel like waiting for me..." Sean stood up and walked over to where Sue was standing, near the kitchen island. He pulled her in for another quick hug.

"Actually, Suzy Q, I'd like to stay a little longer if you don't mind."

"Uhhh...Sean I don't think I'm ready for..." She started. Sean blushed a little bit when he realized how his words had come out.

"I didn't mean...I...don't worry, I'll just be waiting out here." He nervously scratched the back of his head and cleared his throat. Sue grabbed his hand and smiled at him, calming his nerves.

"I won't be long, I promise." She said as she walked toward her bedroom and closed the door. Sean exhaled sharply and shook his head at himself. Communication wasn't his strong point when it came to Sue. For the past few years, being around her felt both familiar and nerve wracking. Even though they had known each other their whole lives, their feelings were new territory that needed time to be explored. At least they were finally on the right track now that they had expressed their true feelings to each other.

Sean was still standing in the kitchen and came up with the idea to surprise Sue with breakfast. He had never done much cooking since his mother, Nancy Donahue, was the picture perfect housewife and mother. She had always made hot breakfast for the kids before school, but now that he was living on his own, he had to fend for himself most of the time. Sean opened the refrigerator to see what he had to work with. There was not much there since Sue had been at home for winter break until last night. He closed the door and looked into the pantry. He grabbed a box of marshmallow cereal and a bag of ground coffee. He located the coffee maker on the counter and began brewing the coffee that he had found. He stumbled around the kitchen in search of dishes and utensils. He found a half burned candle in a jar in one of the kitchen drawers along with matches. After lighting the candle and placing it in the center of the dining room table, he poured two bowls of cereal and two mugs of coffee and placed them on the table along with spoons and napkins. Luckily there was still some unexpired milk in the refrigerator so breakfast was still possible. After everything was set up, Sean noticed his disheveled appearance in the decorative hallway mirror. He looked down at himself, slightly disgusted since he was usually well presented. He took off his button down shirt and noticed that his undershirt looked relatively untouched. He smoothed out the remaining wrinkles and adjusted his hair. He did a quick "breath test" and groaned at himself. He noticed a bowl of mints on the kitchen counter and he sloshed one around in his mouth. At that moment he heard Sue coming back into the room. He spit the mint into the garbage can and casually leaned against the kitchen counter as if nothing had happened.

Sue opened the bedroom door and stepped into view. Her hair was still wet from her shower. She was now wearing a pair of skinny jeans and a white sweater with pink snowflakes on it. She wore a pair of fluffy, pink socks that matched the rest of her outfit. Sean looked at her in amazement when he saw her. Sue had never been the type of girl he thought he would fall for, but after years of being hit on by ultra skinny, attractive, but dumb as a rock girls, he saw something different in Sue that made his heart melt. He loved her bright personality, how supportive and kind she was, and to him, she was absolutely adorable. After spending more time together in recent years, he realized that what he had been looking for was right under his nose the whole time. Sue noticed Sean staring at her and couldn't help but notice he had lost a layer of clothes. His muscles showed through his white t shirt and she blushed a little bit before noticing the dining room table.

"What is this?" She laughed and pointed at the table while walking over to it. Sean laughed in return.

"I just thought maybe you were hungry. We slept through breakfast. Sorry it isn't anything special." He said.

"It's perfect!" She shouted and sat down at the table. The dishes were mismatched, well used hand-me-downs from the Heck house. Sean came from a more upscale household, but after spending much of his time growing up in the Heck house with his best friend, Axl, he had grown used to their different way of life and it was no longer something that crossed his mind. Sean sat down at the table across from Sue and the two of them began eating their breakfast.

"You know, Suzy Q...I've been thinking."

"Oh? About what?" Sue asked.

"There were so many times when I wanted to ask you out...I really want to take you out on a date." He said. "Will you go out on a date with me? Maybe tonight?" He asked.

"I'd love to...but I already have a date." She said and saw his jaw drop. "Just kidding. Of course I'll go out with you!" She laughed.

"Not cool." He said, but he laughed and continued eating his cereal.

After breakfast, which was actually a late lunch, Sean cleared the table and loaded the dishes into the dishwasher. He went over to where he had placed his jacket last night and put it on.

"I really don't want to go, but I need to go back to my place and get ready." He said. Sue grabbed onto his hand and smiled.

"I don't want you to leave either, but I understand." She said. Sean opened the door and stepped out. "I'll pick you up tonight." He said and he smiled at her before closing the door behind him. Sue leaned against the door and almost squealed out loud in excitement. Just then, there were two soft knocks on the door and the door began to swing open. Sean popped in quickly and pressed his lips to hers. He meant for it to be a quick goodbye kiss, but years of secret feelings were pouring out and the kiss quickly deepened. He ran his fingers through her still damp hair while she rubbed her hands over his thin t shirt. She could feel his muscles through the shirt and just a little bit of extra padding, thanks to his mom's Christmas cookies, but she didn't care. This was the guy she longed to be with and she was so happy that the truth was finally out. Sean ran his hand down her back and she shivered slightly. She grabbed at his t shirt before shoving her hands underneath it to feel his bare skin. He gasped at the sensation of skin to skin contact and began kissing her harder, as if needed to be as close to her as he possibly could. Reality quickly came back to him and he broke away. The two of them were both breathing heavily and stared into each other's eyes. They stayed this way for several moments without any words, but it was clear that the same thoughts were running through both of their heads. Sean cleared his throat.

"I'll see you tonight." Sue said finally and Sean nodded while still staring into her eyes. He backed away slowly without breaking the silence with his mouth wide open. Finally he closed his mouth and regained his composure. He waved to her as he walked down the hallway. When he was out of sight, Sue closed the door and leaned back up against it. This time, she did squeal out loud and then skipped and spun around the living room in a complete state of bliss. After a few minutes, she stopped. "What am I going to wear?" She wondered to herself, and quickly ran to her closet.


	3. Chapter 3

Sue was so excited about going out on her first official date with Sean. After he had left, she began digging through her closet in search of the perfect outfit. She thought about calling Brad for advice, but decided she wanted to figure out things on her own this time. Besides, she didn't want to run the risk of anything interrupting her first date. After going through her collection of clothes, she realized that she needed more options. Lexie had once said that Sue could borrow her clothes whenever she wanted to, and now seemed like the perfect chance to take advantage of the offer. Upon opening Lexie's closet door, the perfect dress was hanging right in front of her. It was a simple, but always classic, little black dress. Sue put the dress on and looked in the mirror. Lexie was a little shorter than Sue, which was obvious because the dress was just a little shorter than Sue was used to. She decided that she would stick with her choice anyway and started to work on her hair. Sue didn't know much about styling hair, but she did know how to successfully use a curling iron, so she added soft waves to her hair. She then applied her makeup. She remembered what Lexie had taught her when she helped Sue get ready for the Chancellor's Ball, so she did her best to recreate the look. She slipped on a pair of Lexie's black booties. After admiring her work in the mirror, she felt more ready than ever for this date.

Despite her newly discovered confidence, Sue's heart still began to pound once she heard someone knocking on the door. Sue did one last 'mirror check' before running to the door to open it. The first thing that she saw upon opening the door was an over-sized assortment of beautiful, colorful flowers. Sean lowered the flowers just enough so that Sue could see his face above them.

"Sean! They're beautiful!" She said in awe, and she could see his bright smile show through the arrangement. He stepped into the apartment and set them down on the kitchen counter. Now he was able to see Sue clearly for the first time since she opened the door. The smile on his face faded away and was replaced with a look of desire.

"Wow, you look... _amazing,_ Suzy Q." The smile on his face had returned. Sue felt slightly embarrassed and she blushed.

"Thanks. So do you!" She replied as she admired him, still wondering how a girl like her could end up with a guy like Sean. Sean was wearing a navy blue, button down dress shirt, a blue tie with white dots, and a pair of neatly pressed, black dress slacks. His dress shoes were perfectly polished and his face was freshly shaven. She noticed that he was wearing a light amount of pleasant smelling cologne.

"Thanks. Should we get going?" He asked.

"Sure! Where exactly are we going?" She wondered.

"You'll see." He said with a grin. He reached out his arm to her and she linked her arm with his as they walked side by side out of the apartment, down the hallway, down the stairs, and finally to the car. Sean opened the passenger door for her and she got into the car. He closed the door behind her and walked, with a bit of a skip to his step, to the driver's side of the car and he got in. Sean looked at Sue and took her hand. He kissed the back of her hand gently before placing it back on her lap and starting the engine. Sue knew that Sean was a polite guy, but had never imagined how flawless he could be. She couldn't help but think back about the kiss that they had shared that afternoon and she blushed a little bit at the thought. She wondered if he was thinking about it too, but right now he seemed focused on their destination. They rode in the car mostly in silence, but it was a peaceful silence. Sue felt at ease and was no longer feeling awkward. There was something different about this moment than the moments they had shared earlier that day and the previous night. They were finally on the same page, sharing the same feelings, the same thoughts, and everything just felt right for the first time in a long time. Sean seemed to notice that Sue was deep in thought and finally broke the silence.

"What's on your mind, Suzy Q?" Sean glanced in her direction and smiled, but quickly returned his focus to the road.

"I'm just happy." She said with a smile.

"So am I." Sean replied. "Okay, we're here!" Sue looked out of the car window with a confused look on her face as Sean pulled into the parking lot. She didn't initially recognize where they were but noticed a sign with a picture of roller skates.

"We're going roller skating?" Sue questioned. She had expected that this would be more of an adult date, which is why she dressed the way she had. She wasn't disappointed because roller skating was something she enjoyed as a child, but she worried about her own clumsiness.

"I thought it would be fun! It's just one of our stops tonight. I hope it's okay." He said with a concerned look on his face. Sue didn't realize it until now, but Sean was just as excited about this date as she was. She remembered roller skating by his house when they were young and falling onto her butt as she waved to him. Young Sean had run over to her and helped her back up. She wondered if he remembered that incident, but then she snapped back into the current moment. She looked at Sean and smiled. "Let's do it!" She cried excitedly. Sean's smile grew instantly and he jumped out of the car and ran to the passenger side to open the door for Sue.

It was New Year's Day and the crowds were non existent at the roller rink. A grumpy teenager sat at the ticket window and begrudgingly gave them their rented skates. The forever courteous Sean wished the teen a pleasant evening and the employee rolled his eyes at him. Sean returned his attention to his date without a second thought and took her hand as they walked into the rink. After they put on their skates, Sue stood up and almost immediately fell. Sean caught her by the arm in a flash and helped her steady herself.

"I haven't done this in years." Sue laughed as she cautiously skated onto the wooden floor. "Don't worry, I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you." Sean said as he linked his arm with hers as they slowly moved across the floor. Sue's confidence slowly returned and she let go of Sean's arm. Part of her wanted to not let go, as she enjoyed their closeness, but the other part of her wanted to not appear as clumsy as she once was. She knew that Sean must be aware of her clumsiness, since they had known each other for so long. She wondered if he chose this activity on purpose so that he had an excuse to hold onto her. She smiled at the thought and continued skating across the floor. Sean followed her closely and a few times, skated in a circle around her. Sean had always been athletic and it was no surprise that he was literally skating in circles around her as she struggled to remain balanced. The hour passed quickly as they skated along. They alternated between skating alone, holding hands, and there was a lot of smiling and laughter. After a few months of angst and worry, Sue was relieved to just have fun with the man she felt destined to be with.

After surviving the hour of skating without injury, Sue and Sean returned their rented skates and headed back to the car. Sean started the engine once again and headed for their second destination.

"That was fun." Sue said.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, I had fun too. I hope you're hungry!" Sue had forgotten about food but upon it being mentioned, she felt her stomach rumble.

"I'm starving!" Sue said joyfully. Sean was happy to be with someone who would actually eat. He had dated girls in high school and went on a few dates in college, but he never felt as content as he was feeling right now. Sean wondered how he had never considered dating Sue when they were younger, but he chalked it up to his own immaturity. They pulled up to their next destination, a new steakhouse that Sue had driven by many times, but never thought she would try. Sue suddenly felt bad when she thought about the cost of dinner and not being able to afford it herself. While she was aware that Sean came from a higher income family than her, it was something she didn't like to think about. They walked into the steakhouse, hand in hand. Upon discovering that there would be a 2 hour wait for a table, Sean felt guilty for not making better plans.

"I'm sorry about this, I should have made reservations. I wanted everything to be perfect..." Sean said sadly.

Sue took this opportunity to avoid her own guilt. "I have a better idea she said." as they walked back to the car.

"Are you sure about this?" Sean asked, concerned about where the date was heading. He looked out of the car window at a familiar, run down pizzeria. They had eaten pizza from there several times in between classes. In fact, it was during one of their pizza "dates" when Sean attempted to ask Sue out on a date before she had suggested setting each other up. He was still kicking himself for not speaking up about his feelings right then and there, but it didn't matter now. What mattered was that the truth was out and he was with the girl he loved, even though he had not yet admitted that to her.

"Sure, I _love_ pizza...and I love...spending time with you." Sue said. She had realized what she had almost said and thought it was too soon to feel that way, even though they had known each other for so long. She didn't want to spoil the moment, although she knew deep down how she truly felt. There weren't any tables in the pizzeria so they decided to get it to go. Sean suggested that they go back to his apartment to eat. Sue agreed and they began driving in that direction. Even though they had been close during the past year, Sue had never been to Sean's apartment. When they arrived, Sean once again opened the door for Sue and helped her out of the car. As they walked to his apartment, she wondered how the rest of the night would progress and she suddenly felt nervous. They had mostly been out in public since that kiss they shared that afternoon. She wanted to be kissed that way again, and wondered if he felt the same way. Sean unlocked the apartment door and stepped inside. Sue stepped in after him and took a look at her surroundings while Sean placed the pizza down on the kitchen table. His apartment looked a lot like hers, but it was obvious that guys lived there. There was a stack of video games next to the TV. There were no decorative throw pillows or paintings. A Colts blanket hung over the back of the couch and an unopened bag of chips sat on the coffee table. Other than the misplaced chips, the rest of the apartment appeared to be neat and clean. This was no surprise to Sue as she was used to the Donahue house.

"Sorry about the mess." Sean said nervously and scratched the back of his head. Sue had a confused look on her face.

"Have you seen my house?" Sue laughed and Sean laughed too. Sean went into the kitchen and took clean plates out of the cabinet and brought them to the kitchen table. He gestured for Sue to sit down and she happily complied. Sean sat down in the chair next to her and opened up the pizza box.

"This isn't how I expected the night to turn out." Sean said as he took a bite of his pizza.

"What do you mean?" Sue asked, while she took a slice of pizza out of the box and licked her fingers.

"We've done this a hundred times...hanging out, eating pizza...I wanted tonight to be special." Sean said sadly.

"Tonight _is_ special, at least it is to me." Sue said as she placed her hand on top of Sean's. Sean looked down at her hand and then back up to her face. He leaned in to kiss her on the cheek, but at the last second, Sue turned her head and their lips met. The tension that had built up earlier that day instantly surfaced and suddenly, the two of them were standing, knocking a chair over in the process. Sean ran his fingers through her hair as they passionately kissed. Sue lightly bit his lip by accident and Sean groaned with pleasure. Sean picked Sue up and she wrapped her legs around him while he carried her to the couch. He sat down and Sue was on his lap. Sue grabbed onto the back of his neck and she kissed him while he ran his hands up and down her back. Sue began to loosen his tie and unbutton his shirt. Without realizing it, her hands were suddenly on his bare chest and he kissed her harder. Sean kept his hands on her back. As her hands reached near his belt, Sean slowed down the kissing and tried to speak.

"There's something...I should tell you..." He said in between kisses. Sue backed her head away suddenly and buried her head in his shoulder while breathing heavily.

Sean tried to catch his breath before continuing.

"I've never...you know." Sean said nervously. Sue realized what he was saying and was suddenly relieved. This was something she hadn't thought about because she had always assumed he had no trouble finding girls to be date.

"Never?" She asked with a shy smile on her face, aware that they were still in a compromising position.

"Never." He said. "And I've never been in love...until now." He continued. He looked into Sue's eyes as he said those words and she quietly gasped.

"I haven't either...both of those things." Sue said, a little embarrassed.

"I love you, Suzy Q...and I don't want to rush this." He said as he gently stroked her cheek.

"I love you, too." Sue said and she leaned in to give him a gentle kiss. He kissed her back, more calmly this time before pulling away. Sue gave him a hug and then she climbed off of his lap while smoothing down her dress. Sean cleared his throat as he buttoned up his shirt.

"When the time is right?" Sean asked. Sue nodded as she stood up. At that moment, Sean grabbed her hand and pulled her back onto his lap, eagerly pressing his lips to hers. She returned the kiss just as eagerly, beginning to unbutton his shirt once again and tugging at his belt. Suddenly there was a knock on the door that sent Sue flying off of his lap and onto the other side of the couch. They looked at each other, a hunger in their eyes, and Sean took a deep breath.

"What now?" He said, frustrated as he got up to answer the door.


	4. Chapter 4

Sean reluctantly got up from the couch to answer the door. It seemed like every time Sue and Sean had a chance to be closer, something or someone always got in the way. Sue stood up from the couch and smoothed her dress and fixed her hair before walking back over to the plate of pizza she left behind. Once again there was a knock at the door, followed by a familiar voice.

"Yoohoo, Dr. Donahue! Where are you?" Nancy Donahue asked from the other side of the door.

"Crap." Sean muttered under his breath and looked back at Sue, who was equally shocked. In a hurry, Sean fixed his clothes and tried to wipe the guilt off of his face. This was the worst possible time for his mom, of all people, to show up. Sue quickly shoved a large bite of pizza in her mouth to hide what had been happening just moments before. Finally, Sean opened the door.

"What took so long? Is everything okay honey?" Nancy wondered before walking in the door with a pan of lasagna.

"Mom, what are you doing here? Annnd...everything is fine...we were just...eating dinner." Sean awkwardly replied as he pointed at Sue in the dining room. Sue waved at Nancy while she chewed on her mouthful of pizza.

"Oh! Hello Sue!" She said as she eagerly waved at Sue before turning back to her son. "I was just worried, you left the house in such a hurry last night and you didn't come back. I brought you some dinner but I see you already have taken care of that. So you two are...together now?" Nancy asked, noticing that the two of them were well dressed. Sean nervously scratched the back of his neck and let out a soft chuckle.

"Yeah, we finally talked. Actually, we're kind of on a date right now..." He started to say but she didn't hear him. She brushed past him and walked over to the dining room table where Sue was still sitting. She placed the pan of lasagna on the table. Sean took a deep breath and rolled his eyes before shutting the door. He gave a half smile to Sue and mouthed "I'm sorry." to her. Sue nodded and smiled back at him.

"You look so beautiful!" Nancy said to Sue. "What are you two up to tonight?"

"Thank you! Uhhhh, we actually just had our first date...but the restaurant we went too was too busy so we just brought back dinner here." Sue nervously blurted out but wanted to change the topic.

"I'm so happy for you! You know I love you, Sue. You're already practically a daughter to me." Nancy smiled and gave Sue a hug. Sue could tell that Sean was feeling flustered and embarrassed that his mom was interrupting their first date, which still hadn't technically ended.

"Thanks, Mrs. Donahue." Sue said. "Actually, it's getting kind of late. I should probably go. I...didn't get much sleep last night, being New Year's and all..." A sad look crossed Sean's face and he mouthed to her from across the room "Please don't go."

"Alright, honey. Be careful." Nancy told her. Normally, Nancy would tell Sean to escort her back to her apartment, but their campuses were close to each other and Sue lived here on her own most of the time.

"I will, goodnight Mrs. Donahue." Sue walked toward the front door where Sean was still standing. She could tell from his face that he felt terribly and she so desperately wanted to kiss away that feeling, but with his mom being in the same room, the time was not right. Nancy had already busied herself in the kitchen, cleaning up the already clean countertops and organizing the kitchen pantry. "Tomorrow." Sue quietly said to Sean as she brushed his arm with her hand.

"At least take my jacket." Sean grabbed his Notre Dame jacket and placed it over Sue's shoulders. Sue smiled at his thoughtfulness and pulled the jacket tight against her chest. Sean opened the door for her as she headed out. He glanced back to see where his mom was and she was still focused on the kitchen pantry. He took the opportunity to give Sue a slightly lingering kiss on the lips before she stepped out of the door. Nancy caught a glimpse of their private moment before turning back to continue cleaning. "I love you." Sean said quietly as he lightly touched her hand.

Sue smiled at him. "I love you." She replied. Sue still couldn't believe that she could say that out loud, but she was even more surprised that Sean, the boy she had known her whole life, was saying those words to her. Sean watched her walk down the hallway. Sue still felt like she was floating in a cloud, so much that she didn't notice that she had approached the stairs and clumsily tumbled down the first three steps. Sean watched in horror as he ran to her. Sean got down on his knees next to her and softly put his hands on her face.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his voice full of concern. Sue looked up at the guy she loved and smiled as she sat up. "You know me, always tripping over my own feet." She laughed, but Sean still had a worried look on his face. Sean took her hands in his and he helped her stand up, but Sue yelped in pain and went back down onto the floor, grabbing at her ankle. She hadn't noticed the pain initially in her dazed state. Sean quickly got back down onto the floor to inspect her ankle.

"I think it might be sprained, but you should probably get an x-ray just to make sure." Sean said, still concerned.

"It's a good thing you're going to be a doctor." Sue said with a smile. This time, Sean finally did smile. Over the years, he had questioned his future professional plans. He always wanted to help people, but now that Sue was his, he wanted to be able to take care of her any way he could. Sue's awkwardness was always one of the things he loved about her. She was truly unique and so very different than the other girls he dated in the past.

Sean lifted Sue into his arms and began to carry her down the stairs. Fortunately, there was a health clinic on campus that was still open and they were able to quickly get Sue's sprained ankle diagnosed. They left the clinic, armed with bandages and crutches. Sean took Sue back to her own apartment and helped her into bed. He pulled a chair up to the bed and sat next to Sue. Even though he felt terribly about how their first date had gone, he was happy to have this extra time alone with Sue, away from his mother.

"I am so so sorry about tonight." Sue said to Sean with a sad look on her face.

"Are you kidding me? I'm the one who is sorry." Sean said, confused. Sean and Sue looked at each other for a moment and both laughed at the same time for a long time.

"We must be some of the most unlucky people on the planet." Sue laughed.

"Right?" Sean replied and was still laughing. Finally they were quiet once again. Sue let out a big yawn and Sean brushed her cheek with his fingertips. "I should get you some more ice." He said as he got up from his chair.

"No, it's okay. Can you just come over here?" She patted the space on the bed next to her. Sean nodded and crawled onto the bed into the space behind her, on top of the covers. He carefully placed his arm around her stomach and Sue squirmed to get cozy next to him. Sean suddenly realized that this was the first time he had been in a girlfriend's bedroom and suddenly felt nervous, but at the same time, it felt right. Sean leaned forward slightly to place a soft kiss on Sue's neck, which caused her to shiver slightly and he heard her inhale deeply. He responded by giving her another, lingering, but gentle kiss in the same place. This time, he felt more at ease. At that time, Sue turned around to face him. For a moment, they just stared into each others eyes, neither one of them moving, but they were close enough that Sue could feel Sean's breath on her skin and smell his subtle cologne. She quickly glanced down at his lips and then back up to his eyes. Sean noticed the gesture and smiled while leaning in to softly press his lips to hers. Sue leaned into the kiss and placed her hand on his chest. Sean deepened the kiss and pulled her slim body closer to his. Sue was tangled in her blanket and squirmed for a minute to get herself free. Sean noticed the struggle and assisted, pulling the blanket free from underneath himself and rolled underneath it to be even closer to Sue. He moved away from her lips and began gently kissing her neck, causing her to breathe heavily into his ear. He kissed a sensitive spot on her neck that tickled and made Sue giggle. He broke away from her for a second and laughed with her, burying his forehead into her shoulder. Sue suddenly started to tickle Sean's stomach and he rolled onto his back, laughing. Sue rolled onto her side and placed her head on his shoulder and her arm around his chest. Sean's laugh faded into a smile and he watched the girl he loved snuggle up in his arms. Sue couldn't help but smile at him. Sean's bright smile was something she had seen so many times during her life, but seeing him smile at her, because of her, filled her heart with happiness. Sean closed his eyes, his smile still remaining on his face. He took a deep breath and Sue could tell that he was starting to fall asleep. Sue pulled the covers up to fully cover the both of them and quickly drifted to sleep in his arms.


	5. Chapter 5

Sue woke up in the morning feeling refreshed and happy. For the second night in a row, Sean and Sue had fallen asleep together in her apartment. She still couldn't believe that they were finally together. She especially couldn't believe that he had spent the night twice. After a big stretch, Sue rolled over to face her new boyfriend, but only saw a pile of pillows. Concerned, she sat up quickly and worried that he regretted staying there. Her mind was set at ease when she noticed a note on her nightstand. _Went out to pick up coffee. Be back soon. xoxo._ She smiled and held the note up to her chest. She wondered how a girl like her could be so lucky to get a guy like Sean. Sue got out of bed limped over to her bathroom. Her ankle was still sore, but the sprain didn't seem to be as bad as she thought. She looked at herself in the mirror and took a minute to brush her hair and wipe off the smudged makeup from the night before. She brushed her teeth and put on a fresh pair of jeans and a sweater before heading into the living room. She heard keys being inserted into the deadbolt and she was instantly excited. A familiar face came into view.

"Lexie?" Sue asked.

"Why do you sound so surprised? I do live here don't I?" Lexie replied sarcastically and shut the door behind her. She was pulling her rolling suitcase and Sue realized that she was coming back from her winter vacation with her family. Sue limped over to her and gave her a hug. "What happened to you?" Lexie asked, pointing at Sue's foot.

"It's a long story." Sue replied with a laugh.

"Suzy Q! I'm back! Rise and shine..." Sue and Lexie heard as Sean opened the door and stepped inside. Sean had an embarrassed look on his face.

"You're _back?_ But it's only 8 in the morning...oh...my...gosh!" Lexie shouted excitedly.

"I told you it was a long story." Sue laughed awkwardly. "Sean and I fell asleep here last night...after going on our first DATE." Sue said, suddenly cheerful. Sean smiled and put two coffee cups down on the kitchen counter.

"You _finally_ told her?!" Lexie asked Sean.

"What? How did you know?" Sue had a confused look on her face.

Sean laughed nervously and started backing away towards the door. "You know what? I only brought two coffees. I'll go get another one. How do you like yours, Lexie? Cream? Sugar? I'll surprise you." Sean said as he stepped out of the door and closed it behind him.

"That was...weird. What's going on?" Sue asked her roommate.

"Remember that night when you, Axl, Sean and I were having dinner and then Sean and I went off on our own?" Lexie started. Sue remembered that night all too clearly. Up until then, she never noticed that she even had feelings for Sean, but she couldn't help but feel jealous when Lexie went out with him. "When Sean and I were having coffee, he kept talking about you and I kept talking about Axl. We kind of made an agreement to keep it a secret. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you! I didn't know you liked him!" Lexie said.

"Wow. I can't believe he liked me all the way back _then._ Well, I guess it doesn't matter. We're together now!" Sue said.

"I'm sooooo happy for you!" Lexie shouted and hugged Sue. "So have you told anyone yet?"

"Oh no...it's only been two days." Sue laughed and nervously pulled on a loose thread on her sweater. "I guess I probably should, huh."

Sean reopened the door with a cup of coffee and stepped inside. He handed the fresh cup of coffee to Lexie.

"Thanks!" Lexie happily took the cup of coffee and started to walk toward her room. She turned back to look at Sue, pointed at Sean and mouthed "He is so sweet!" Sue smiled and Lexie stepped into her bedroom and closed the door.

"So...what did you ladies talk about?" Sean nervously asked. Sue could see that he was nervous and wanted to comfort him.

"Just about how jealous I was when you and Lexie went out...and how you wouldn't stop talking about me on your 'date'" Sue laughed. Sean looked surprised.

"You were jealous?" He smiled and pulled her in for a hug.

"So what? Weren't you jealous when Aiden showed up on New Year's?" Sue asked playfully.

"Too soon." Sean said with a smile. He grabbed both cups of coffee in one arm and took Sue by the hand, leading her back into her room. Sue got back into bed and sat up against the headboard. She took a few sips of her coffee which was already starting to get cold. Sean turned on the small bedroom TV before climbing into the bed next to Sue. He turned to her and smiled, opening up his arms to invite her in. Sue crawled in between his legs and leaned her head against his chest. He put his arms around her and kissed her on the head. They stayed that way in silence for a while, watching morning cartoons. Neither of them were really paying attention to the TV. They were just enjoying being together. After a while, Sean broke the silence.

"Do you know what I wanted to happen on New Year's Eve?" Sean asked, not expecting a response. Sue turned around to face him and eyed him questioningly. Sue leaned forward first to press her lips to his, catching him off-guard. He responded by instantly deepening the kiss. He ran his fingers through her hair and down her back. Sue began unbuttoning his shirt and pulled it off of him. Sean broke away for a second to pull his undershirt off over his head. He returned his lips to hers and explored her mouth. Sue lightly bit his lip, remembering how he responded last time, and Sean pulled her closer and kissed her harder. Sue lightly touched the bare skin of his back. Sean's breath quickened and he slipped his hands under the back of her shirt. Sue gasped a little bit at the sensation, experiencing this closeness for the first time. Sean felt her hesitation and broke a away to ask "Are you okay?". She nodded and continued the kiss. Sue slowly moved her fingers toward his belt and began to loosen it. She felt Sean suck in a deep breath as he grabbed at the bottom of her sweater, lifting it off over her head. Sue momentarily felt nervous, having her well-worn bra exposed, but quickly remembered who she was with. Sean loved her and knew almost everything about her. He knew where she came from, what her life was like, her family. Family. Suddenly, Sean's phone began to ring. Sue was startled and shook a little. Sean noticed and broke away. "It can wait." Sean said as he went back to kissing Sue. After his phone stopped ringing, Sue noticed the sound of her ringtone. This time, Sue broke away. Sean was breathing heavily and he looked at Sue's shirtless body for the first time. He placed a gentle kiss on her bare collarbone and pulled her in for a hug, gently stroking her back. The phone continued to ring and Sue put her forehead on Sean's shoulder, breathing gently onto his chest. Her phone stopped ringing and she quietly whispered "finally." She raised her head to kiss Sean on the neck. She slowly brought her lips back up to his face and kissed him on the chin, then on his cheek, then his nose, and finally on his mouth. That's when Sean's phone began to ring once again. Sean pulled away, frustrated, and muttered "What is it?" under his breath. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone to read the display. Axl. Sue narrowed her eyes in confusion and reached over to the nightstand to grab her phone. Axl had called her too. A quick wave of guilt crossed Sue as she thought of her family.

"I think we're being punished for not telling anyone yet." Sue said.

"I think you're right." Sean said as he shoved the phone back into his pocket. He leaned back against the headboard and let out a sigh. He reached for his button down shirt and placed it over Sue's bare shoulders. She smiled and slipped her arms through the sleeves. Sue turned around once again to face the TV and leaned against Sean's chest. She began to dial Axl's number into her phone when she was interrupted with a text message from him. _Mom wants you to come home tonight for family dinner._ Sue showed the text to Sean.

"Let's tell them tonight." Sean said.

"Tonight." She replied.


	6. Chapter 6

Note: Thank you so much for all of the great feedback! I am glad that everyone is enjoying the story and I enjoy writing it. Feel free to continue making suggestions of things you'd like to see. I usually don't even know what I am going to write before hand. I just let the story take me wherever it goes. We all need something to help us get through the agony that the show is giving us! I hope they won't let us down, but for now, we just have to use our imaginations. Enjoy chapter 6!

* * *

It was a snowy afternoon when Sue and Sean began the 42 minute drive to Orson. Sean had offered to drive since he had a more reliable car. During the drive, the new couple discussed how they would tell the news to their families. They weren't overly worried since everyone already knew each other, but you never know what will happen when it comes to family. Sean pulled his car into Sue's driveway.

"If you don't mind, I should probably go see my parents for a bit. I did kind of abandon my mom in my apartment last night." Sean worried what is mom would think about him disappearing with Sue, but hoped she wouldn't be too upset with him.

"That's fine, I'll see you for dinner then?" Sue reached for Sean's hand and linked her fingers with his. Sean leaned his head back against the headrest and exhaled loudly while admiring his new girlfriend.

"It's a date." He said, and he pulled her hand toward his lips and gently kissed it. When their eyes met, he leaned down to kiss her softly on the lips, lingering slightly. Sue opened the door and carefully stepped out onto the slippery driveway that had not yet been touched with a shovel. She gave Sean one last wave as she walked through the snow to the front porch. When she reached for her keys and put them in the lock, Sean began to pull out of the driveway and make his way to his parents house. Sue stepped into the house and stomped her feet by the front door to get the snow off her boots before slipping them off.

Mike and Frankie were sitting on the couch binge watching Outlander. Brick was sitting at the kitchen table, reading a book as usual. Sue walked into the living room and plopped down on the couch next to her mom.

"Hey, Sue!" Frankie said cheerfully as she patted Sue's knee. "Thanks for coming, I just thought it would be nice to have dinner together tonight since we didn't get to spend New Year's Day together. "How is...everything?" Frankie asked cautiously. She secretly already knew about their new relationship and was a little upset that she had to hear the news from Nancy Donahue. Nancy had come over to their house the previous night with her pan of lasagna she took to Sean's apartment, before he disappeared with Sue.

"Everything is great!" Sue said excitedly. She wanted to tell them the details right then and there, but instead she talked about how Lexie had come back from her vacation with her rich parents.

"They just always have to rub their vacations in everyone's noses." Mike snubbed as he flipped the channel to a sports channel.

Axl came into the room when he heard the game on TV. "Finally watching something good. Hey, dork." Axl playfully elbowed his sister and he squeezed onto the couch. "Why aren't we eating yet? I'm _starving._ " He remarked.

"I'm making dinner." Frankie told him, even though she wasn't making dinner. In the heck house, making dinner usually meant going though the nearest drive thru or ordering a pizza with coupons that had come in the mail. In this case, it was the latter.

"Actually..." Sue began, hesitating. "I invited Sean to come over for dinner...if that's okay." Axl had a small smirk on his face. He already assumed that Sean and Sue were together since he basically delivered Sean to her door. Mike didn't think anything of it, since Sean had been over at their house countless times as Axl's best friend.

"Sure, honey...that's fine." Frankie said. "So um...is there anything you want to -" There was a sharp knock on the door. Mike got up to answer it, assuming it was the pizza, which it was. A few minutes later, Sean arrived and Sue let him in.

"Hey Mr. and Mrs. Heck!" Sean greeted them with his usual overexcited tone and a handshake. "Hey Ax-man!" He told his best friend as they shared a high five. "Brickster! What's happening?" He shouted to the youngest brother. Brick held up a finger at first as he finished reading his current sentence in the book before lifting up his head to say hi. "Miss. Q." Sean pointed and winked at Sue with a smile. Everyone gathered around the kitchen table and piled slices of bargain pizza onto mismatched plates. Mike scolded Brick to put his book away and he did with a sigh. Axl was only half paying attention to the small talk that was happening over dinner. The rest of his attention was focused on texting with his girlfriend, Lexie. Sean and Sue eyed each other cautiously from opposite sides of the table, waiting for the right moment to share their news.

"So, Sean." Frankie began to try and pry the information out of the guest. "How was the rest of your New Year's Eve after you rushed out of the party?" Sean looked around nervously and Axl raised his head, interested. Sean took one last deep breath before speaking up.

"Actually...it was great." He looked at Sue for a moment, she was smiling at him. "I went to see Sue when she went back to her apartment and..."

Axl received a text from Lexie. _Did you know that Sean spent the night here?_ This came after they had been texting back and forth for a while about the two of them dating. Axl dropped his phone on the table and pointed an accusing finger at Sean.

"You hooked up with my _sister_?" Axl shouted and stood up. Mike was finally paying attention and a look of rage appeared on his face.

"You WHAT?" Mike stood up and glared down at Sean who was still sitting. Frankie's mouth fell open. Brick let out a nervous "whoop!"

"I...I...Mr. Heck." Sean stammered. Sue began to panic.

"I'll kill him." Mike muttered to Frankie.

"Mike!" Frankie yelled and tugged on his arm. Brick "whooped" again.

"Mr. Heck I..." Sean stammered again.

Sue stood up finally and yelled "Stop!." Everyone stared at her.

"Sean and I are dating!" She blurted out in a hurry. This didn't make Mike calm down.

"And no we didn't...hook up...Axl." She retorted. Mike didn't seem as angry then and he reluctantly sat down after Frankie pleaded quietly.

"Then why did he spend the night?" Axl shouted. Mike stood up again and breathed heavily.

"We just fell asleep...watching a movie." Sean lied. He wasn't the type to lie which caused Sue to raise a curious eyebrow. "Nothing happened." He continued.

"I don't like this, Frankie." Mike said to his wife.

"Just settle down." She pleaded.

"It's true, Dad." Sue said, defending her nervous boyfriend. Axl had already lost interest in the conversation and went back to texting.

"Mr. Heck...sir." Sean said nervously. "I promise that I'll never do anything to hurt your daughter. I'll always have the utmost respect for her, and for you, sir." He said, holding out his hand reluctantly for a handshake. Even though he was nervous, his words were sincere. Mike sighed and shook his hand. "You better." He said. Everyone had taken their seats once again and quietly finished eating dinner. As the time passed, the tension lessened. A game was playing on TV and then men sat on the couch watching it. Frankie and Sue chatted in the kitchen about the new relationship. Sue apologized for not telling her right away, but Frankie wasn't upset anymore. As the evening came to an end, Sue and Sean got their coats on to head back through the snow to campus. Frankie hugged her daughter and she hugged Sean as well. Mike nodded silently at Sean and said goodbye to his daughter. The couple stepped out of the door and closed it behind them.

"That went...well." Sean said, sarcastically and took Sue's hand. She laughed. She was glad that the news was out but hoped it would have gone more smoothly. Her father was never too happy about any of her boyfriends, but she knew that he liked and respected Sean. It would just take time for him to adjust. Suddenly the door swung open as they were about to leave. Axl appeared and he stepped out of the house. He grabbed Sean by the shoulder and turned him around to face him. Sean took a step back in surprise. Axl pointed his finger in Sean's face and glared at him.

"Don't even think about hurting my sister." Axl said in a threatening tone. Sean didn't have a reply as he was still slightly in shock. Sue's mouth hung open. Even though she was closer to her brother than she used to be, it was still surprising to her that he actually cared this much. Axl stepped back into the house and slammed the door shut without saying another word. Sean and Sue shared a look before holding hands once again and walking across the street to retrieve Sean's car. Sean started the car and turned on the heat to get rid of the chill in the air. Sean sat back for a moment, deep in thought.

"Is everything okay?" Sue asked quietly. Sean turned to look at her and smiled.

"I know it's kind of soon...but do you think you'd want to go somewhere with me...like for the weekend? I think it would be nice to just get away from everyone for a while." Sean wasn't sure how Sue would respond, especially after how the evening had gone. Sue had a surprised look on her face but did not seem uncomfortable. A smile came across her face, removing the nervousness that Sean felt.

"That sounds great." Sue finally replied.

"Great! I already have a place in mind." Sue was curious but didn't ask any questions since she knew he liked to surprise her. Sean leaned over to give her a kiss before starting their drive back to campus.


	7. Chapter 7

It was a snowy, Friday afternoon when Sue excitedly ran out of her last class of the day. She hadn't been this excited in a very long time, even though she was almost _always_ excited about _something._ She had been counting down the days for the past few weeks. This was the weekend...the BIG weekend that her and Sean were going to go away on a road trip. When Sean first brought it up, she was a bit nervous but that faded as time went on. They had been dating for nearly a month now and after a slightly awkward family dinner, they decided to take their time and enjoy the relationship, taking time to get to know each other again. Of course, they had known each other their whole lives, but not as a couple. Sue ran into her apartment and threw her backpack down on the floor.

"Friday! AHHHHHHH!" Sue yelled as she danced in the front entryway. Lexie was sitting on the couch with her feet up on the coffee table. She glanced in Sue's direction and smiled before turning back to the tv. She was used to Sue being overly excited and it didn't phase her very much anymore.

"Lexie? It's Friday!" Sue yelled again. Lexie looked back in her direction with a sarcastic look on her face.

"Yeah, it's Friday...wait...it's FRIDAY!" Lexie yelled as she jumped up from the couch and hopped up and down. This was the reaction Sue had hoped for. Sue told her roommate about all of the details of her new relationship, including the upcoming getaway. Lexie was genuinely excited for her and even took some time for "girl talk" in case the weekend went into a certain direction.

Sue ran into her bedroom and pulled her suitcase out from underneath her bed. She already packed most of her things the week before because the anticipation was just too much for her to wait any longer. Sue heard her phone's ringtone and saw a text alert from Sean. _Be there in 5._ Attached was a dolphin emoji, Sue's personal favorite emoji. A prompt five minutes later, Sue heard a knock on the door and smiled when she opened it. Sean smiled widely at Sue and moved in to give her a big hug. "Ready to go, Suzy Q?" he asked before placing a quick kiss on her cheek and grabbing one of her hands. She nodded and grabbed her suitcase with the other hand. Sean offered his other hand to carry her suitcase for her and Sue smiled in agreement.

"So are you going to tell me where we are going?" Sue asked while she looked out of the passenger window at an unfamiliar road. She noticed their surroundings becoming more rural. Sue's stomach made a growling noise and she hoped that Sean didn't notice. He did notice and he laughed, making Sue feel less uncomfortable.

"I'm hungry too." Sean told her. "There's a place coming up soon where we can stop." He continued. Sue didn't notice any buildings nearby and wondered what he was talking about. Sure enough, a diner came into view as he rounded the corner. "I'll run in and get us something to eat so we can get back on the road." Sue nodded in agreement as he got out of the car. Not long after, he came back with two containers of food and two slices of pie. Sue opened up her container of food and saw chicken tenders and fries. He quietly chuckled to herself. Sean knew her so well that he didn't even have to ask what she wanted to eat. He just knew. The thought of this made her feel relaxed as they got back on the road in route to their mystery destination.

An hour later, Sue noticed that they were near in the forest and saw small, secluded cabins in the distance. They drove down a long, narrow driveway up a hill before coming to a stop. "We're here!" Sean happily said.

The cabin appeared small at first, but as they stepped closer, Sue realized that it was actually only a little bit smaller than her parent's house. There were two wooden rocking chairs on the front porch and large ceramic pots holding dried flowers that did not make it through the winter. When they stepped inside, Sue's mouth dropped when she saw how luxurious everything seemed. The furniture all appeared to be new. There was a large flat screen TV mounted above the fireplace. There was a modern kitchen with shiny, new looking appliances. The ceiling was tall and covered with impressive wooden beams. Sue noticed a small swimming pool inside an enclosed room off of the living room. A sudden wave of guilt crossed Sue's mind when she thought about the cost of it all.

"Wow. Sean this is just...wow...you really shouldn't have..." Sue started to say before Sean interrupted her.

"I didn't." He smiled and took her hand. "Actually, Lexie hooked me up with this. Her parents have more houses than they know what to do with." He laughed.

"Huh." Sue replied as she walked over to the couch and plopped down on it. She was kind of surprised that Lexie hadn't spilled the surprise to her in the weeks before. Sean walked over to the gas fireplace and turned it on before sitting down on the couch next to Sue. He put his arm behind her head and she leaned against it. "I hope this is okay." Sean said reluctantly, wondering if she was disappointed in their destination. Sue turned to him and smiled. "This is perfect." She said as she slid closer and leaned her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. After a few minutes, Sue got up to further explore the cabin. Sean followed closely behind her as this was his first time here as well, but he had seen pictures ahead of time. Sue stepped into the room with the swimming pool. She slipped off her shoes and rolled up her pant legs before sitting down by the edge of the pool to put her feet in the warm water. Sean sat down beside her and did the same. Sue let out a relaxed breath.

"This feels so nice. I can't believe this place has an indoor pool...I wish I would have packed my bathing suit..." Sue said before realizing where she was and who she was with. Sean looked at her with a comforting smile and put his hand on her knee. "I...uh...didn't bring mine either." He said nervously while he scratched at the back of his neck with his free hand. A look of relief crossed his face. "Actually, I have something I want to give to you." He got up suddenly and went back to the living room to his suitcase. Sue splashed her feet in the water whimsically and decided she wanted to go for a swim to calm her nerves. After a moment to gather her thoughts, Sue slipped out of her sweater and jeans, leaving her in just her purple cotton bra and panties. She figured it was close enough to a bikini anyway. At least it matched. She dropped herself into the warm water and dunked her head underneath to acclimate her body to the new temperature. Sean stepped back into the room and his jaw dropped when he saw the pile of clothes sitting on the floor. He was carrying a purple gift bag with some writing on it that Sue wasn't able to read from a distance even when she tried squinting her eyes. She noticed the look of surprise on his face as he set the bag down on a table and stepped closer to the edge of the pool. Sue smiled at him and playfully splashed a small amount of water in his direction, leaving a few dark specs on his jeans. Sean snapped out of his gaze and looked down at his wet pants. He laughed and gave Sue a playfully evil smile. "Oh, that's it." He said as she removed his shirt and slipped off his jeans, leaving him in his red and blue striped boxers. He jumped into the pool swiftly, landing a cannon ball a few feet away from Sue, splashing a large amount of water in her face. As he came to the surface with a huge smile on his face, Sue spit out the water that landed in her mouth and laughed. Sue thought about all of the times they had gone swimming together in the Heck's family pool. Her memories made her feel at ease as they splashed each other in the pool. After a few minutes, the laughter and giggles faded into smiles. Sean swam closer and put his hands around Sue's waist, pulling her closer to him. Sue sucked in a small amount of air and wrapped her legs around his torso to keep herself upright. She put her hands on the back of his neck and looked into his eyes for a moment before pressing her lips to his. Sean quickly pulled her even tighter against him and deepened the kiss. He ran his fingertips along her almost bare back. Sue gently bit down on his lip and heard him let out a soft groan. She moved her fingers slowly down his chest, stopping when she felt the waistband of his boxers. Sean moved his hands to her thighs and carefully carried her out of the water while they kissed. When they got to the pool deck, Sue put her feet on the ground while keeping her lips on his. They stumbled across the pool deck, through the living room, and into the bedroom leaving a path of water droplets behind. Sean picked her up once again and laid her gently on the bed before crawling on top of her, his lips still on hers. He moved his lips to the crook of her neck and kissed her there. Carefully, lovingly, they went to a place where neither of them had gone before.


	8. Chapter 8

"Oh, Sean..." Sue whispered as she felt Sean's hands slide across her thin body. His lips felt soft on hers and she shivered when he moved to kiss her neck. She could feel his hot breath on her skin and the warmth spread through her body. "Sue.." she heard him say, but she could hear concern in his voice. "Sue?" He questioned as she backed up to look at him, unsure of what was going on.

Sue jolted awake suddenly and was breathing heavily. "Sue?" She heard once again from a familiar voice. "Are you okay?" Sean asked as she turned to look at him. Sue looked around the room to see that she was still on the couch, in a cuddling position, in the same place she had sat down in the cabin when they first arrived. She noticed their luggage sitting near the door. She was still wearing her jacket and then she realized that it had all been a dream. She fell asleep as soon as they arrived at the cabin, probably due to the excitement building over so many weeks. And it was easy for her to feel comfortable in Sean's arms. They had fallen asleep next to each other so many times now that now it just felt natural. "I think you were dreaming..." Sean smiled. Sue wondered if she had made any noises, or words, in her sleep. "Heh...I guess I was..." she replied sheepishly, her cheeks flushed. Sean leaned down and kissed her.

"Well, now that you're awake, what do you want to do?" Sean asked. "Maybe we could go for a swim?" He continued and Sue's eyes widened, remembering her dream. Nervously, she stood up quickly and almost fell over. "Ummm, how about a movie?" She pointed at the big screen TV. "They have so many DVDs, what do you want to watch? You know what, I'll just pick something random." She stumbled as she reached for a movie. Sean raised an eyebrow and tilted his head at her before standing up. He put his hands on her shoulders and turned her body to face him. He looked into her eyes and gave a half smile. "Are you sure you're okay?" He asked. Sue took a deep breath and instantly calmed down when she felt his gentle touch. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just excited to be here with you." She said as she wrapped her arms around his torso. He gently squeezed her body against his and stroked her hair. "So am I." He replied as he rested his chin on her head. "So what are we watching?" He asked.

"Hmm?" Sue questioned, before remembering the movie that she had already popped in the DVD player. "Oh." She picked up the DVD case to see what she had picked. " _13 Going on 30_ I guess. Is that okay?" She asked, realizing that it was a chick flick.

"A boy that is in love with his friend and neighbor. Sounds fitting for the situation." Sean replied, a smile on his face. Sue had a surprised look on her face before he spoke again. "I have two sisters, remember?" Sean grabbed a fuzzy blanket from the linen closet and sat back down on the couch, propping his feet up on the coffee table. When Sue walked back over to the couch, Sean caught her off guard by grabbing her by the waist and pulling her down onto his lap. She playfully yelled and then laughed, pulling his face toward hers to kiss him before rolling off of his lap to sit next to him. She covered both of them with the blanket and put her feet up next to his. Sean put his arm around her shoulder and she rested her head on it. They cuddled each other in comfortable silence as they watched the movie. About halfway through the movie, Sean pointed at the screen and spoke.

"You know, he really should have just spoken up about his feelings a long time ago. It would have saved them both a lot of trouble." He said, jokingly. Sue nudged him in the ribs and laughed.

"You're one to talk, you could have told me a long time ago too." She said sarcastically. Sean suddenly had a serious look on his face.

"Actually, I tried to." He replied. Sue had a confused look on her face. "What do you mean? When?" She asked, curious.

"Well, the first time I tried, Axl told me you had a boyfriend. I brought you a present and everything." He said.

"You did?" She asked. Sean got up suddenly and walked over to his luggage. "Yeah, I did." He said, rummaging through his bag. "I have no idea how this ended up back at my parent's house, I mean I threw it in the trash at your apartment building. Kind of stupid of me." He continued.

"The trash?" Sue remembered one thing she had found in the trash but didn't think there was any way it could be the same thing, although it had always felt special to her and she had no idea why. Sue pulled a purple gift bag out from his luggage and brought it over to Sue before sitting back down on the couch next to her. On the bag, he had written _To Suzy Q, a very special snowflake._ She smiled as she remembered the first time he called her a special snowflake. She reached into the bag and felt the familiar object before pulling it out into view.

"My snowglobe!" She yelled excitedly. "I never thought I would see this again!" She stared at it in awe and shook it around playfully.

"Your...what...how did you...?" Sean stammered.

"I found it, in the trash. Actually, I like to say that I rescued it. I ended up gifting it in the Yankee Swap at Christmas because I forgot the gift that I bought. I can't believe it was from you! It's no wonder that it always felt special to me. I love it!" She squealed and wrapped her free arm around Sean in a half hug. She broke away and set the snowglobe on the table so that she could give him a full hug. "And I love you." She said to him. "I love you too, Suzy Q."

Sue still felt surprised every day that her and Sean were finally together. Day by day it seemed that they were even more destined to be together before either of them even knew about it. She knew that Sean genuinely loved her and cared about her, which made he feel confident in what she wanted to do this weekend, and not just in a dream. Sue stood up and turned off the movie. She reached her hand out to Sean, who took it, not sure what she was doing. He got up off of the couch and looked into her eyes. She smiled and began pulling him in the direction of the bedroom. "You asked me what I wanted to do. I'll show you." Sean followed her into the bedroom and closed the door behind him.


	9. Chapter 9

**Note: Hi everyone! Sorry about the teasing in the last chapter. I did it for a few reasons. First, I wanted to find a way to incorporate the snow globe before a special moment. Second, I wanted to show that Sue was mature enough to have adult thoughts and feelings instead of just jumping into something due to the heat of the moment. I think it would go against her character to rush into things without thinking, and over thinking everything! Hopefully this is the chapter you have been waiting for. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for reading and reviewing!**

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Sean leaned against the bedroom door after closing it and took a deep breath. Thoughts were rushing through his head. He wondered if Sue meant what he thought she meant. Clear communication wasn't always their strongest trait as a couple, especially before they became one. He thought about how close they had been in recent weeks to taking the next step. He thought about the solitude of the rural cabin and the woods surrounding them. He wondered if she was prepared, physically. He remembered that he was always prepared these days. His medical school was always lecturing about personal protection, and handed out 'samples' of small, foil wrapped packages with the school logo on it which he recently began carrying around in his pocket just in case. He snapped back to reality when Sue reached up to kiss him tenderly on the lips. He closed his eyes and moved his hands to cradle her face. He felt her part her lips slightly and he deepened the kiss in response. He kissed her slowly, taking time to enjoy the moment. Sue wrapped her arms around his torso. Usually there was a sense of urgency when they kissed, but this time, it was different. This time, they weren't trying to make up for lost time. They were just two people who were in love.

Sue broke away for a moment and looked into Sean's eyes with a loving smile on her face. She once again took his hand and led him to the bed. He followed her willingly, going wherever she wanted to take him. She laid down on the bed, propping herself up with a few soft pillows. Sean stood next to the bed, waiting for a signal. Sue opened her arms wide, inviting him to come closer to her. He smiled and gently crawled on top of her, carefully placing his knees between her legs. He placed his hands on the bed to keep his weight off of her and leaned down to kiss her again. They kissed each other slowly for a while, before Sue began to quicken the pace. Sean's heart was beating quickly and he exhaled sharply, returning her kiss feverishly. Sue wrapped her legs around Sean's body, pulling him closer to her. Sue grabbed the bottom of Sean's shirt and pulled it over his head in one quick motion. She slid her hands along his smooth chest and stomach. She tugged at his belt as she had done in the past, but this time succeeded without interruption. She undid the button of his jeans and lowered the zipper. She partially expected there to be an interruption but it did not happen. Sean wiggled his hips and his jeans slid down to his knees, revealing his blue, striped boxers. At that moment, Sean broke away from the kiss and leaned up to look into Sue's eyes. She bit her lip nervously, expecting that he thought they were moving too quickly, but he no longer appeared to be nervous. He took a few deep breathes to calm himself before speaking. "Are you sure?" he asked, his voice full of concern and love for her. Sue smiled and lightly touched his face. "I'm sure." She responded. "Are you?" She asked him, her eyes accidentally leaving his face and scanning his body before returning to his eyes. "I think you know the answer to that." He chuckled as he moved a stray hair away from her eyes. "I love you." He said with a smile. "I love you too." She responded. Sue pulled him closer to her once again and kissed him softly. Sean began to remove her clothes, piece by piece, asking with his eyes at each step to make sure it was okay. When finally, there was nothing left between them, they spent a few moments just savoring the skin on skin contact, neither of them ever being this close to anyone in the past. Sean reached for his crumbled up jeans and reached his hand into the pocket. Sue heard a crinkling sound and suddenly everything felt very real, but she was ready. Sean kissed her softly and lowered himself into position. Sue's dream finally became reality, and it was even better than she had ever imagined.

Sue felt the warmth of the sun shining through the bedroom window the next morning. She squinted her eyes as she opened them to adjust to the morning light. She was wrapped in a comfy down comforter, her head resting on a fluffy pillow. She felt the slight movement of fingers on her bare torso when suddenly, the events of the past night rushed through her head. Sean's lips on her lips. His hands on her body. Their first time. She sighed a content sigh and placed her hand on top of Sean's on her stomach. He shifted slightly at her touch and let out a sleepy yawn. She was amazed at how comfortable she felt in this position, despite the fact that she could feel all of him against the back of her body. She wondered how he was feeling and hoped that he was as happy as she was. He squeezed her slightly and placed a soft kiss on the back of her head.

"Good morning." Sean said, his voice still raspy from sleeping. Sue turned around to face him, still covered by the warm blanket. She placed her hand on his chest and rested her head on his shoulder. She leaned forward to kiss him on the lips, the front of her body slightly brushing his skin. Sean made a pleased "mmm" sound and smiled widely.

"Good morning." Sue said finally, tracing her finger along his ribs.

"Last night was...wow." Sean said, looking into her eyes. His eyes were still heavy with sleep.

"It was literally like a dream come true." Sue said with a small laugh, thinking about the dream she had the previous day. She didn't want to tell him the details of the dream right now. Some things are better left unsaid, she thought. She even pinched herself a few times just to make sure that this time, it was real.

Sean was happier than he ever thought he could be. After a year of chasing after the girl of his dreams, he still couldn't believe that she was finally his. Everything seemed to click into place between them very quickly, and he knew that he wanted to be with her for a long time, maybe even forever. He had imagined the kind of girl he would marry one day, and still kicked himself for not noticing Sue right under his nose for so long. But that didn't matter now. And it was too soon to think about marriage, even though it stayed on the back of his mind. He flashed back to the present, giving Sue another squeeze before speaking.

"So, Suzy Q." He cleared his throat of its morning hoarseness. "We never talked about what else you'd like to do this weekend. There are some activities nearby, we could go sledding, go out to eat, play some games in the lodge, whatever you want to do." He said. Sue shifted her eyes slightly, thinking about what he had said. She loved all of the things he mentioned, but wanted to spend this weekend in a different way.

"Hmm.." She said, still pondering. "Or we would stay in." She said with a mischievous smile. He grinned at her and quickly pulled her on top of him.

"I like the way you think." He said before kissing her passionately. They spent the rest of their weekend, expressing their love for one another, savoring every second of their time together.


	10. Chapter 10

Sue drove down a familiar stretch of highway on the way home to Orson. Sean sat in the passenger seat, humming along with the radio in the old, hand me down car that Sue now owned from her deceased Aunt. Sue insisted on driving this time because she always felt bad being escorted around town by her boyfriend in his 'fancy' newish used car, even though she knew he didn't care either way. The couple was on their way to the Donahue's house. Nancy Donahue had announced on New Year's that she was going to be hosting a Valentine's Day party, and that day had finally come. Sean had apologized over and over again for not being able to spend Valentine's Day alone as a couple, but the ever optimistic Sue didn't mind. As they cruised down the highway, a few puffs of smoke leaked out from under the hood. Sue turned to look at Sean with a concerned look on her face before the car engine shut down on it's own. Sue let the car roll onto the shoulder of the road as it slowly came to a stop. Frustrated, Sue groaned and banged her fist on the steering wheel. "Not again!" She cried. Sean placed his hand on her knee to comfort her.

"It's okay, Suzy Q. I'll take a look and see what I can do." He said, leaning sideways to kiss his girlfriend on the cheek. Sue couldn't help but smile.

"You're the best." She said to him as he stepped out of the car. He propped open the hood of the car and began to tinker with things under the hood. He walked to the trunk to look for something. Sue stepped out of the car to offer assistance.

"You're out of coolant...and there isn't any in the trunk. We're going to have to call somebody." Sean said as he brushed some dirt off of his hands. Sue nodded and reached into her pocket to pull out her cell phone. She first dialed her parents but no one answered. Sean held up his phone to reveal a map of a nearby service station. "There's a store about a mile down the road. I can walk over there, it shouldn't take too long." Sue put her cell phone back into her pocket. "I'll come with you." She smiled and took a step closer to him. Sean smiled and reached out his hand to take hold of hers. Sue happily squeezed his hand and the pair began their stroll down the empty road. It only took about twenty minutes to reach the store and get what they needed before starting the walk back to the car.

"You know, Suzy Q, you should really keep a bottle of this in your trunk just in case." Sean suggested with a smile. Sue nodded and smiled back at him. She admired her boyfriend. They had only been together for a month and a half so far, but she loved the way he was always so caring, never scolding her over simple things like this. She had never been the type who wanted to be rescued, but she never minded being rescued by him. "Thank you for this." She said to him, caressing his arm gently with her hand. "You don't need to thank me." He smiled. "I'd do anything for you." He continued. She knew that his words were genuine and his reassurance filled her heart with joy. About half way back to the car, Sue spotted a large boulder off of the side of the road nestled in between a few trees. Her feet were beginning to ache slightly due today's choice in footwear and she wanted to sit. "Would you mind if we take a break for a minute?" Sue said as she pointed to the mostly hidden boulder. "Not at all, my arm is starting to get tired." Sean said as he pointed to the jug of fluid in his left hand. The pair walked through low brush, hearing the sound of dead leaves, leftover from the Fall, crunching beneath their feet. Sue sat down on a flat edge of the boulder. Sean set the bottle of coolant on the ground and took a seat next to her, letting out a deep breath. The weather was mild for February and the sun felt warm on their skin after months of harsh winter weather. The sounds of nature around them were peaceful and refreshing. Sue closed her eyes for a minute and leaned her head back to enjoy the sun on her face. Suddenly she felt a pair of soft lips press against her own lips and she opened her eyes. Sean's eyes sparkled in the sunlight and the way he looked at her reminded her of their recent close encounters. "This is nice." He said quietly as he brushed his hand along the side of her face. Sue was a little surprised at his statement since the day had not exactly gone as planned, but she was enjoying it more than she expected to anyway. "It is nice." Sue finally responded with a smile, noticing a small bird fly from one tree branch to another. Sean turned to face Sue and held onto both of her hands, pulling them to his chest.

"Sue, I just want you to know how much you mean to me...and I'm so happy that we are together. I'm sorry that today hasn't really been the best Valentine's Day...and I wanted to wait for the right moment..." He started. Sue tilted her head in curiosity, wondering what was going through his mind. He let go of one of her hands and reached into his pocket to pull out a small, velvet covered box. Sue immediately felt a wave of panic rush through her body, remembering what had happened last time she was in this situation. Sue wasn't ready for what she thought was about to happen. She was afraid that everything was going to be ruined when she wasn't ready to say "yes." Sean could sense her sudden change in emotions and felt his heart sink a little bit, but decided to continue ahead anyway, trying to change the tone of the moment. "I just wanted you to have this...as a Valentine's Day gift." Sue's nerves began to settle and she took a deep breath, now realizing that this wasn't what she thought it was. She felt surprised that now she was feeling a little disappointed that it wasn't but she shrugged those feelings aside. He placed the velvet box into her hands and moved his hands to her knees while she opened it. Inside the box was a simple, but beautiful, small diamond ring. Sue was shocked and a little confused about what was happening. She noticed that it was engraved and she held it up to her eyes so that she could read the text. _Worth the wait._ Sue blushed and chuckled softly at the perfect line. "It's a promise ring. I just want you to know that I'm in this for the long haul." Sean smiled as he reached for the ring and her left hand. He saw the surprised look on her face and he cleared his throat. "Do you like it?" He asked, his voice filled with concern. He worried that he may have scared her away by moving too quickly. Sue lifted her head until her eyes reached his. Nervousness left her body and was replaced with glee. "It's perfect. Thank you!" She shouted as she leaned forward to give Sean a big hug. He closed his eyes and smiled brightly, relieved that everything was okay. When they broke away from their embrace, Sean held up the ring in his hand. "May I?" He asked while pointing at her hand. "Mmhmm." She replied, stretching out her fingers. Sean slid the ring onto her ring finger and she held it back up to her face to admire it. Suddenly the words he said echoed through Sue's head.

"So, you really think about that? You know, the future? Us?" Sue asked nervously. Sean took her hand in his again. Sean had thought about the future, about his future career and where he would live, but he never thought much about marriage until recently.

"It's kind of hard to explain." He began. "I used to think that I knew exactly how my life would end up...you know, I'd go to college, date girls, eventually become a doctor and settle down..." Sue cringed at the thought of him dating other girls, but shrugged away the jealousy since she had dated several guys in college too. Sean continued. "But somewhere along the line, things changed. I changed. I spent my whole life trying to live up to Donahue standards, and no one really saw me as me...except for you. And I've never felt this way about anyone before. Everything between us just feels so right...and I'm so happy...and so in love with you...and I want to feel this way forever." Sue covered her mouth with her hand and a tear began to roll down her cheek. Sean noticed and wiped it away. "Are you okay?" He asked. He was always so concerned about her feelings. Sue nodded her head. "Happy tears." She said and she rested her head on his shoulder. "I love you." She said. "You're so perfect for me." She continued. Sean shook his head. "No. We are so perfect...for each other." He corrected her. Sue leaned up to kiss him softly on the lips. Sean placed his hands on both of her cheeks and pulled her face closer to his. She parted her lips slightly and Sean accepted her invitation. He kissed her slowly but passionately. His hands moved to her back and he pulled her thin body closer to his. She could feel his body heat through his coat and the warmth spread through her body. A car could be heard in the distance but they were too busy to pay attention. The car rolled to a stop on the side of the road and a man stepped out of the badly scratched vehicle. Sue heard footsteps approaching and she quickly pulled away and looked towards the man with a horrified look on her face. Sean quickly jumped up and tried to wipe the guilt off of his face. Mike Heck stood in the clearing with his arms crossed in anger. "Dad! What are you doing here?"


	11. Chapter 11

**Hi everyone! I'm so sorry that it has taken me so long to update! We need to have some more people here writing some stories hehe. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this new chapter and thank you once again for reading and reviewing.**

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Sean shifted uncomfortably and stuffed his hands into his pockets, his eyes looking down at his feet as he lightly kicked a small pebble on the ground. He knew that he didn't actually do anything wrong, but being a Donahue, he always felt that there was some kind of standard that was always expected of him, and that didn't include making out with his girlfriend on the side of the road.

"So, is this what he does? He just takes advantage of my daughter out in the open where everyone can see?" Mike questioned as he pointed an accusing finger at Sean, who was still looking down at his feet.

"Dad! Relax. We just stopped here for a few minutes on the way back to the car." Sue said as she pointed at the bottle of fluid that was still sitting on the ground. "How did you find us anyway? You didn't answer when I tried calling you." Sue continued.

"I umm..." Mike stammered.

"Oh my God! You're still tracking me on your phone, aren't you?! I thought you were done with that!" Sue scoffed.

"So what? I want to know where my daughter is. And this isn't about me." Mike said. Sue rolled her eyes at his comment and exhaled loudly.

"Well we should get back to the car so we can still make it to the party at the Donahue's. Are you ready to go, Sean?" Sue asked. Sean nodded and quickly picked up the bottle of fluid and started walking back towards the road.

"Wait just a minute. Just get in the car. Both of you." Mike said and Sean and Sue complied. They drove in awkward silence back to Sue's car that was still parked right where she left it. Mike and Sue stepped out of the car first. As Sean was about to open his door, Mike blocked it and said "You stay here." Sean nodded and closed his door once again. He shrunk down in his seat, slightly worried about what was happening here. He watched as Mike worked on Sue's car and heard the sound of the engine starting back up. He could see that they were speaking, but was unable to make out what was being said.

"We'll meet you in Orson. I want to have a little chat with your _boyfriend."_ Mike told his daughter. She knew that this would happen eventually. Her father always struggled with expressing his love for her, but one thing that was obvious was that he was very protective of her. He had never been a big fan of any of her boyfriends in the past. A part of her thought that he would think differently about Sean, but she never really knew what was going on in his head. Sue got back into her car and quickly sent a text message that simply said _Sorry..._ Sean replied back with a nervous emoji.

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Mike and Sean drove in the car for a few miles before either of them began speaking. In the rear view mirror, Sean could see Sue driving behind them on the way back to Orson.

"So...you really like Sue, do you?" Mike asked. Sean was a little confused about the question at first, since obviously they were dating already and everybody knew that.

"Yes, sir. I really do." Sean replied. He wasn't sure if he should say more, but he decided that he would. "Actually, I love your daughter, Mr. Heck." Mike had an unreadable expression on his face and exhaled sharply.

"Love? Aren't you two a little young for that?" Mike asked. "I don't want this to end up like it did with her and _Darrin_." Mike shook his head in disgust. He had never cared for Darrin and was especially angry when he tried to marry his teenage daughter at the time.

"I'm 23, Mr. Heck...and no offense but Sue isn't a little girl anymore." Sean realized instantly that he shouldn't have said that, but there was no going back now. Mike sighed and tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

"That's what I'm afraid of." Mike replied as he leaned his head back on the headrest.

"You've known me for how long? Practically my whole life?" Sean asked. Mike nodded and thought about the first time little Sean Donahue came over to their house to play with Axl. Even then, he was probably the most well behaved child he had ever met. He smiled slightly at the thought.

"Yeah." Mike replied. He was never big talker after all and didn't want to say all of the positive things that were running through his mind.

"I would never do anything to hurt Sue...or any of the Hecks. All of you have always been like a second family to me...I hope that one day we will all actually be a family." For the second time today, Sean worried that he said too much. He was also surprised that he was also thinking about marriage again. Why did he keep thinking about marriage? To his surprise, Mike did not completely flip out.

"It's too soon for that...if you're saying what I think you're saying." Mike replied in a calm voice. He was also surprised by the level of calm in his own voice. He didn't like the idea of Sue growing up, but he also couldn't hate the idea of Sean Donahue being his future son in law, especially after some of the other guys that Sue had dated.

"I know. I just hope you're okay with seeing a lot of me." Sean said and he chuckled. "Because I know that Sue is the one." Sean said.

"Well, you do make her happy. That's what I want, for her to be happy." Mike said. Sean smiled and reached out his hand for a handshake.

"Thanks, Mr. Heck." Sean said as he held out his head. Mike hesitated at first but he extended his arm.

"Sure." Mike said simply as he shook Sean's hand.

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Sean was already standing in the driveway when Sue pulled in. She quickly got out of the car and ran into his arms. Sean picked her up off of her feet while he embraced her and he kissed her softly on the lips before setting her back down on the ground.

"Oh my God, I am soooooo sorry. Is everything okay? I don't know why he gets like that. He just doesn't..." Sue blabbered before she was cut off by Sean's finger on her lips.

"Everything is great, don't worry Suzy Q." He said with a big smile on his face as he pulled her against his chest and rested his head on top of hers. Sue let out a sigh of relief as they swayed back and forth alone in the driveway. He always had a way of calming her instantly. She didn't know why she was surprised that he would be able to sweet talk her dad. He was Sean Donahue after all.

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"Ohhh my goodness, aren't they just precious?!" Nancy exclaimed to her neighbor and best friend, Frankie Heck as they peeked around the curtains of the Donahue's living room window.

"I know! I still can't believe it!" Frankie squealed as she shoved one of Nancy Donahue's delicious appetizers in her mouth. "Is this Gouda?" Nancy laughed off the question with a waving hand gesture and skipped over to her elegant wooden bookshelf, grabbing an over-sized binder.

"I know this is silly, but I already started planning, just in case! You know how I just LOVE planning parties!" Nancy said as she flipped through the pages of the binder. Frankie nearly spit out her mouthful off food when she noticed pictures of weddings dresses and table decorations.

"You're already planning their _wedding?_ " Frankie said in awe as she flipped to the next page where she saw an order form for doves.

"I just like to be prepared!" Nancy defended with a smile.

"Well...maybe you can add these." Frankie began to say while she rummaged through her purse, revealing a pile of crumpled up and stained brochures of wedding venues she collected at an informational booth near the city limit.

"Sure...I'll just stick these in the pocket!" Nancy hesitated, then stuffed the brochures in the back pocket behind all of her other neatly gathered papers.


	12. Chapter 12

"I'm _bored._ " Axl complained as he pulled Sue's laptop away from her while she was in the middle of typing a sentence. Sue glared at her brother, frustrated that he was always hanging around at her apartment. But could she really blame him? His best friend, and now her serious boyfriend, was always hanging around too, so the three of them plus Lexie seemed to be spending a whole lot of time together these days.

"Axl! I was using that! You know you don't have to be here ALL of the time. Some of us are trying to study!" Sue shouted at her brother. Axl just rolled his eyes at her and opened the internet browser on her laptop to start surfing the web to kill time. Sean and Lexie were used to watching Axl and Sue bicker by now so it was easy to ignore it, but Sean felt the need to help Sue relax when things began to get heated.

"Suzy-Q? Would you come over here and proofread this for me?" Sean asked while patting the space next to him on the couch. Not that Sue knew anything about his paper, but he was attempting to diffuse the situation. Sue nodded and started to walk toward the couch, but couldn't resist the urge to quickly turn her head back and stick her tongue out at her brother. Lexie laughed at the sight of it nudged Axl in the arm.

"Why can't you just be nice to her, Axl?" Lexie asked.

"Psh, I _am_ nice. It's not my fault that she gets worked up over _everything._ " Axl replied. Lexie gave him a half smile and nod. After all, she did know that Sue was prone to overreacting. And over the the past year, she did see their relationship improve. She wondered if she had anything to do with it.

"Just ignore him, Sue." Sean suggested after Sue sat down next to him on the couch. Sue let out a loud sigh and Sean placed his free hand on her knee.

"Sorry...he just gets on my nerves sometimes." Sue explained. Sean knew that Axl always gave Sue a hard time. Now that Sean was dating Sue, it bothered him more than it used to, but he didn't want to cause any problems by interfering. Sean leaned in to give Sue a quick kiss on the cheek and was interrupted by a whining Axl.

"Dude, do you have to kiss my sister right in front of me? I thought we had a deal!" Axl groaned.

"Sorry, Ax-man. She's just so darn cute that I can't resist." Sean said while poking Sue on the nose. Sue had a gloating smile on her face when she turned to her brother.

"Eww...just...stop...uuuughhh." Axl grimaced as he returned his focus back to the computer. Sue shook her head and turned to look at Sean.

"Anyway, do you still want me to proofread this? I don't think I'll even be able to..." Sue started to say. Sean shoved the paper into his textbook and placed it on the coffee table. He reached his arm around Sue and pulled her closer to him on the couch.

"Nah...I just wanted you to come over here." Sean smiled and stole another quick kiss, this time on the lips. Sue began to wish that Lexie and Axl would disappear right about now, but she knew that they all had homework to work on, except for Axl who was just there to annoy her. Axl burst out laughing at something on the computer and everyone turned to look at him.

"Is this _you?_ " Axl asked Lexie as he pointed to the screen. Lexie turned the laptop so that she could see the screen. She saw a small girl with frizzy, dark hair, sporting a cowgirl outfit and seated on top of a horse. Lexie's mouth gaped open in embarrassment when she recognized the old picture of herself.

"Oh my God where did you FIND this?!" Lexie demanded.

"I just Googled you and it came up. Haven't you ever just Googled your name to see what comes up?" Axl asked, surprised that she wasn't aware that the picture existed on the internet. Of course Axl had searched for himself countless times.

"No...what else is there?" Lexie asked, genuinely curious now.

"Hmm, not much, just a link for your Facebook and an article from the school newspaper. Hey! I wonder what will come up if I search for little Miss. Dorkface over there!" Axl wondered as he grinned at his sister.

"AXL!" Sue yelled, annoyed once again. She couldn't seem to catch a break. Sean playfully rolled his eyes, suggesting to Sue that she shouldn't worry about it.

Axl laughed when he found the first search result. "HA. Look at this picture with your hair stuck in your braces at the school pep rally!" Axl shouted. Sue buried her face in her hands, knowing that she had a whole lot of dorky moments in high school. She didn't want Sean to know about them, but naturally he already knew everything about her.

"Hey, Suzy Q." Sean said. "There's nothing wrong with braces. I mean, you have a beautiful smile now." He complimented, making her heart melt.

"What the..." Axl started to say. Lexie leaned over to look at the laptop screen and gasped before squinting and leaning closer to examine the page more carefully. "You're getting _married_?" Axl demanded as he turned the laptop around to reveal a wedding website with Sue and Sean's names on it.

" _What!?"_ Sue gasped as she ran over to look at the computer. Sean followed and tilted his head in confusion. Sue turned back to Sean in horror. "I didn't...I don't even...I don't know...it wasn't me...I didn't do this!" Sue trailed on trying to explain herself to Sean. "Wait...did you?" Sue asked him. But guys didn't think about things like this, did they?

"What? No, I didn't make this." Sean said. Sue felt slightly disappointed but was mostly feeling confused.

"Then who did?" Lexie wondered.

"I don't know..." Sue said. "What else is on this page anyway?" Sue asked as she pulled the laptop closer so she could click around on the page. Axl, Lexie, and Sean stood behind her to watch. Sue clicked on the link for "Our story" and saw a description about their relationship, some childhood photos, a group picture of the Hecks and Donahues at their Yankee Swap Christmas Party, and a more recent photo of Sean and Sue from Valentine's Day.

"Wait a minute." Sean said. "My mom took that picture of us at the Valentine's Day party. Don't you remember?" Sean asked.

"Oh, yeah." Sue remembered arriving to the party late that day and Nancy had caught them off guard with her new camera. "So do you think..." Sue asked.

"I think so." Sean said.

"Huh." Sue said as she walked back over to the couch. Sean followed her there and sat down next to her. Sue had never really thought a lot about marriage, but seeing the website made her feel surprisingly happy. Sean, on the other hand, had thought about marriage often lately and was kicking himself for accidentally bringing it up on the phone to his mom a few weeks ago.

"I'm sorry, Sue...I shouldn't have...I mean...she shouldn't have made that site." Sean apologized. Sue quickly turned to him in confusion.

" _You_ shouldn't have? So you _did_ do it?" Sue asked.

"No...I didn't. But I may have brought up the topic to my mom and she may have blown it way out of proportion." Sean explained.

"Oh..." Sue said sadly. "So you don't want to..." Sue started to say. Sean picked up on her tone and quickly reached for her hands.

"No, no, no." Sean let out a deep breath. "I do. I mean maybe not this minute...but I do want to...when you're ready." Sean said with a hopeful smile.

"Okay." Sue replied. "Just promise me that whenever you're ready to ask me...I won't find out about it online first...and PLEASE make sure Axl isn't around." Sue rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Deal." Sean laughed and extended his arm for a handshake. Sue took his hand and instead of shaking it, she pulled him closer to her and wrapped her arms around him. Sean laughed into her hair and squeezed her back.

* * *

Nancy Donahue and Frankie Heck excitedly ran through the aisles of Bed, Bath and Between with a gift registry scanner in hand. Nancy held up a set of 'D' monogrammed towels. "They are going to need these!" Nancy suggested. Frankie looked at the towels with a disapproving glance...of course 'D' stood for Donahue, but Frankie wasn't quite ready to give up the Heck name just yet.

"I don't know." Frankie said. How about these instead?" She held up a set of 'S' monogrammed towels to represent the names 'Sean' and 'Sue.'

"I like the way you think!" Nancy shouted as she used the scanner to scan the barcode of the towels. Frankie had already taken a few steps forward to move on to the next display rack of kitchen utensils. Nancy looked around to make sure no one was looking before she deleted the 'S' monogrammed towels from the registry and replaced it with the 'D' monogrammed towels.

"Nancy! Come look at this!" Frankie said as she held up an inflatable foot bath box. She figured this would be a great way to get revenge for that terrible Mother's Day Gift.

"Coming!" Nancy cried as she walked to catch up with Frankie.


	13. Vegas 1

A/N: Hi everyone! Just a reminder that I wrote this story right after the New Year's episode, so anything that happened in the show after that point is not reflected in my story. For example, Lexie was never cut off financially, Sean didn't go to Ghana, Axl is not in Denver. I hope you enjoy! The next chapter will be posted tomorrow because I ran out of time today.

Sue could hardly believe her eyes when she received an email containing her textbook list for her Senior year at East Indy. Summer was already coming to an end and it had just flown by. Between balancing her work schedule, applying for internships, and her blooming relationship with Sean, she hardly had any time to even realize that it was already August. She was grateful that she now had a chance to hang out with Brad and Lexie for the first time in several weeks. The trio had planned a movie night at Sue and Lexie's apartment to kick off their Senior year.

"Who want's some bubbly?" Brad asked enthusiastically as he held up a bottle of cheap champagne that he had picked up on his way over. Lexie took the bottle from Brad's hand and carefully examined the label.

"No, thanks." Lexie said kindly as she handed the bottle back to Brad and pulled a bottle of Fuji water out of the fridge. She was used to the "finer" things in life since she came from a wealthy family. She had been allowed to take part in wine tasting during family dinners since she was 16 and had developed a taste for certain varieties of wine that Brad and Sue didn't even know existed.

"Sure, why not?" Sue replied and Brad carefully poured the champagne into two glasses. He passed one of the glasses to Sue and they clinked them together before taking a sip simultaneously. She couldn't help but make a face when the bitter liquid splashed onto her tongue, but she swallowed it anyway and shook her head in an attempt to remove the taste from her mouth. Brad laughed at the sight of it and went into the fridge to pull out a carton of orange juice.

"Mimosas instead?" He suggested. Sue nodded and he added orange juice to both of their glasses before placing the carton back in the fridge. Sue took another sip and this time, it was much more refreshing. Lexie threw a package of popcorn into the microwave while Sue set up the movie on the tv.

"We need to do this more often. I feel like we are all always so busy lately!" Lexie commented.

"Tell me about it." Sue replied. "I've been working soooooo many hours at Spudsy's. I really wish I could have gotten that desk job at the Orson Inn. At least then my feet wouldn't feel like they were going to fall off." Sue continued.

"At least you're making money. I had to spend the whole summer sitting around in the garage while my dad attempted to teach me how to fix the car. He said it would build character." Brad rolled his eyes dramatically and Sue laughed.

"At least Lexie had a fun summer. She even has the tan to prove it." Sue smiled and Lexie smiled in return, but she felt a little guilty that she had spent her summer vacationing in Hawaii with her parents.

"I guess so, but we've already been to Hawaii like 4 times so it wasn't that exciting..." Lexie attempted to make it sound less enjoyable. Brad and Sue exchanged glances but brushed it off since this was a common occurrence in their friendship. Sue's phone vibrated on the counter and Lexie brought it over to the couch where Sue and Brad had already settled in for the movie. "It's a text from Seeeeean." Lexie teased as she passed the phone to Sue before plopping down onto the couch in between Brad and Sue. Sue opened up the text on her phone that simply read _Can we talk?._ Sue's mind instantly went into overdrive as she wondered what had happened. The champagne was not helping either.

"How is that going, anyway?" Brad asked casually without looking at Sue.

"Uhhhh...I thought it was going great but now I'm not so sure." Sue stammered as she held up the phone so Brad and Lexie could see the message.

"Uh oh." Brad said, which was totally not helpful for Sue's already overactive imagination.

"It's probably nothing, why don't you just call him?" Lexie suggested. She had always been level-headed and always help Sue to not jump to conclusions.

"Alright.." Sue hesitated, but got up from the couch and went into her bedroom so she could have more privacy. She took a deep breathe before hitting the 'call' button on her phone. Sean answered after the first ring.

"Hey Suzy Q!" Sean said happily, easing Sue's nerves somewhat.

"Hey Sean. What's up? Is everything okay?" She asked.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your night, I just got off from my shift at the student clinic and I wanted to talk to you about something." Sean said.

"Oh...what is it?" Sue tried not to sound sad on the phone, but she was having a hard time keeping herself together.

"So, I know we planned on spending this weekend together since it will be the last one before classes start back up again...buuuut one of my professors is putting together a small group of med students to attend a convention this weekend...in Las Vegas. I just found out about it. I guess they have had this planned for a while now but one of the students ended up transferring out of St. Matt's and I was asked if I wanted to go. They already had the convention tickets and hotel room paid for and everything." Sean said.

"Las Vegas? Wow...that sounds...fun...for you..." Sue said sadly, but relieved that he wasn't dumping her which was what she was expecting despite having no reason for doubting his love for her.

"Actually...I was wondering if you would want to come with me. I know I'll be busy in the afternoon but I would just love it if we could spend some time together there during my free time...and I know you already took off work this weekend since we were planning on spending time together anyway." Sean said hopefully. Sue let out a sigh of relief and her mood instantly improved.

"THAT SOUNDS AMAZING!" Sue screamed into the phone, but was then a little embarrassed by her outburst. She assumed that the champagne was affecting her after all. Sean laughed into the phone.

"So is that a yes?" Sean asked.

"YES! I would LOVE to go!" Sue agreed cheerfully.

"Perfect! I'll message you the details. I'll let you go so you can continue your movie night, but if you want me to swing by later just let me know. I love you, Suzy Q."

"I love you too, Sean. I can't wait!" Sue said.

"It will be GREAT. I promise you." Sean said before they said their goodbyes and hung up the phone. Sue burst through her bedroom door and quickly jumped back into the living room, screaming in delight.

"I take it that it's good news?" Brad asked calmly, used to Sue's exuberant personality.

"WE'RE GOING TO LAS VEGAS!" Sue danced clumsily in the living room. Brad and Lexie exchanged a look and then looked back at Sue.

"We are?" Lexie asked. Sue calmed down and explained what Sean had told her over the phone.

"Actually...since he's going to be busy during the day..." Sue began.

Lexie jumped up, ran to grab her purse, and pulled out one of her many credit cards.

"Viva Las Vegas!" Brad shouted excitedly.


	14. Vegas 2

"Are you sure it's not too soon? I really don't want to scare her away, Mom." Sean said to Nancy as they strolled down the sidewalk in front of a small strip of mom and pop shops that lined the streets in the small college town of Gumford. Nancy had come to see her son for lunch before he headed to Las Vegas for the weekend. Sean reluctantly confronted his mom about the wedding website and ever since, she had flooded his email and phone with wedding ideas. Sean opened the door for his mother on their way into a small jewelry store not far from the pizza shop where Sean and Sue had their first pizza date. He smiled at the thought and realized that he had never been happier in his life than he had been during these past 8 months.

"Your dad and I were only together for 6 months before he asked me and look at us now! You know she's the one, right? Why wait? You two are going to give me the cutest little grandkids one day." Nancy gushed. Sean nervously looked down at his shoes and his cheeks were feeling warm. Even though Nancy knew that Sean and Sue were a serious couple, he had never told her or anyone else exactly how serious they had been already. He expected that his parents would assume he would wait until marriage, but he felt that it wasn't really anyone's business.

"Yeah, she's definitely the one." Sean admitted with a smile. He looked down at the jewelry counter and carefully scanned the various styles of engagement rings that lined the velvety shelves. He wasn't necessarily planning on proposing to Sue this weekend, but he wanted to be prepared in case the moment was right. It was rare for them to be able to go on an out of state trip together and he knew this weekend would be special for sure. "What do you think of this one?" Sean asked as he pointed to a small, but very pretty heart shaped diamond ring with Amethyst accents that represented Sue's birth month.

"Ohhh, that is just sooo pretty. I think she would love it!" Nancy was genuine in her response even though her own diamond ring was much more flashy. Sean knew that Sue was not a flashy person and he loved that about her. Often times, he felt more like one of the Heck's than than one of the Donahue's since he never cared that much about vanity or appearances, even though he was grateful that he had been blessed when it came to his looks. It did cause him to attract some unwanted attention throughout school. One of the things he always loved about Sue was that she saw through his looks and into his heart.

"Wrap it up!" Sean shouted a little too excitedly to the store clerk after he had spent a few minutes negotiating on a price, currently thanking his lucky stars that he had always saved his money instead of blowing it on junk. When the clerk handed the neatly wrapped package to Sean, he thanked him sincerely and escorted his mom out of the store.

"I'm just so excited for you, dear!" Nancy proclaimed on the way back to Sean's apartment.

"Thanks, mom. I still don't know when it's going to be so just keep this between us for now please." Sean pleaded. The last thing he wanted was for the whole neighborhood to find out before he even had a chance to talk to Sue privately. He wondered if anyone else had seen that wedding website, which he hadn't asked his mom to take down.

"Of course, just between us." Nancy winked and Sean smiled back reluctantly, unsure if she would be able to keep this a secret.

* * *

The weekend had finally arrived. Unfortunately, Sean's flight was already fully booked before Sue found out about the trip, so she decided to fly separately with Brad and Lexie on a flight that, luckily, arrived just half an hour after Sean's plane was scheduled to land in Las Vegas. The trio met up with Sean at the airport and the four of them shared a taxi to the famous Bellagio Hotel. Sue had mentioned that Brad and Lexie were planning on tagging along and Sean didn't mind since he was going to be busy during the day with the conference anyway. Besides, they had booked a separate room courtesy of Lexie's dad's credit card so that Sean and Sue could have their privacy. After checking into the hotel, the group split up to head to their individual rooms and get settled before having dinner. Brad and Lexie planned on eating at the hotel's buffet that night and Sean and Sue had dinner plans at the Paris hotel. Sean pulled the hotel key card out of his pocket, carefully making sure the small, square shaped box was safely secured in the same pocket. He opened the door allowing Sue to pull her rolling suitcase inside and he stepped in the room after her, locking the door behind him. Sue ran over to the window and stared out of it in awe.

"Wow. This is AH-MAZING!" She shouted as she admired the view of the Bellagio fountain that appeared down below. She remembered seeing the famous fountain on several TV shows and never imagined that she would be able to see it in person. Her gazed moved up and she saw the shimmering glow of lights on both sides of the Las Vegas strip. Across the street she could see the Eiffel tower of the Paris hotel where they were going to have dinner that night, and the streets were flooded with tourists walking up and down the strip. She noticed a man stumbling around with an almost empty bottle of alcohol in his hand and she cringed slightly before turning back to look at the hotel room for the first time. The bed was neatly made with white and light purple linens. The side tables were modern and simple and adorned with lamps that were already on when they entered the room, creating a soft, relaxing glow. Sue plopped down on the bed and kicked off her shoes, taking a deep breathe for what seemed like the first time since she stepped on the plane that day. Sean rested his suitcase next to Sue's and followed her lead, removing his shoes and plopping down next to her on the bed. He rolled onto his side to face Sue, placing his elbow underneath him and resting his head on his hand.

"Finally, we can just be together after what seems like forever. Thanks for coming with me, Suzy Q." Sean said with a genuine smile. Sue returned his gaze and couldn't help but smile in return.

"Thanks for inviting me." She said stretching out her arms. Sean laughed and swiftly rolled Sue on top of him. Sue squealed in happy amusement and leaned down to kiss her boyfriend. He kissed her back eagerly, enjoying the closeness and the comfort of their limited alone time. As Sue leaned into him, she felt the square object in his pocket and propped herself up so that she was straddling his thighs.

"What's that?" She pointed at his pocket and asked in confusion, knowing it was too small to be his wallet or phone. Sean's eyes widened and he quickly covered his pocket with his hand in an attempt to hide it.

"Oh...it's nothing...just something I forgot to throw in my luggage." He said. Sue shrugged and leaned back down to continue kissing him. Sean was relieved that she didn't ask any further questions and after a brief moment of panic, he relaxed into the motions of making out with Sue, an activity they both enjoyed very much.

* * *

After a steamy shower, that ended up being a lot more 'steamy' than Sue was expecting, Sean and Sue got dressed for their dinner date at the Paris hotel. They walked across the street hand in hand. Sue felt the vibration of her cell phone in the pocket of her summer dress and pulled out her phone with her free hand. Frankie had sent her at least 10 links, that she did not open, of websites with wedding dresses that her and Nancy had found. Sue rolled her eyes and held up her phone to show Sean.

"Ugh, can you believe that she is still doing this even after I called her out on it when I found that Bed, Bath, and Between registry list at the house?" Sue groaned, but followed up with a laugh because it was sort of amusing. Sean just smiled.

"My mom has been sending me stuff too. The other day she even sent me a list of available dates for the banquet hall in Orson." He laughed and tried to gauge Sue's feelings on the subject. They had talked about marriage casually from time to time, but they had never talked about a time frame for any of it.

"They are really in a big hurry, aren't they?" Sue mused. Sean frowned slightly at her statement but she didn't notice.

"Heh...yeah it seems that way..." Sean said. "Anyway, I hope you like dinner. One of my coworkers at the clinic recommended it and I checked out the menu online. It looks really good." He said in order to change the subject.

"I'm sure I will, I'm just happy to be with you." Sue said as she pulled his arm closer to her and leaned her head on it as they walked to the restaurant. Sean leaned down to kiss her on the top of her head and moved his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to his side.

* * *

A/N: I hope you are all still enjoying this story as much as I enjoy writing it! It's also been great to see all of the new stories popping up. I think you're all very talented and come up with some great ideas! It sure has made it easier to handle the fact that the show is over. Anyway, thank you for reading and reviewing. Next up will be their dinner date and more Vegas stuff. Happy Thursday!


	15. Vegas 3

Sue felt her phone vibrate in her pocket when she received a text during dinner. She pulled it out to check it and it was a message from her mom that read _Any news yet?_ "News?" Sue asked out loud, having absolutely no clue what her mom was talking about. She decided that she didn't want any more dinner interruptions and she switched her phone over to silent mode before shoving it back in her pocket.

"Is everything okay?" Sean asked before taking a bite of his Rib Eye steak. Sue looked down at her own steak on her plate, which she had already almost finished, and poked at it with her fork. She looked up to meet Sean's gaze.

"Yeah, my mom just keeps sending me these cryptic text messages asking if I have any news to tell her. I have no idea what she's even talking about." Sue said. She reached across the table to the bread basket to pull out one more roll. She slathered some butter on it before popping it into her mouth. She hoped that Sean didn't judge her for scarfing down her food, but she was starving after a long day of traveling.

Sean coughed a little in surprise, knowing in the back of his mind that Nancy probably opened her big mouth already. For the past few years, Frankie and Nancy had become much closer and acted more like sisters than neighbors. On more than one occasion he had overheard the two gossiping about others in their small town. He didn't mind that they had grown closer, especially now that they were practically family, but he didn't want to ruin the surprise for Sue. He wondered if she was even ready to be asked. Would she say yes? Would he be risking ruining their currently happy relationship by popping the question? But this was Sue. Sue was just like Sean in that she was too nice to throw away everything they had built over a miscommunication or not quite being on the same page. After all, they had danced around their feelings for each other for years and yet here they were, finally together. Sean reached down to feel the square shaped box still securely stored in his pocket, but figured that it wasn't the best moment while his mouth was filled with food. He returned his attention back to Sue who had just finished her plate of food. He smiled at the thought of being with someone who wasn't afraid to actually eat. He remembered dates he had been on in the past with girls who wouldn't order anything more than a salad. Still, Sue somehow managed to still have a petite figure. He felt slightly jealous of this since he had to work extra hard to keep the pounds off after years of eating his mother's butter filled desserts.

"Thanks again for being okay with Brad and Lexie tagging along this weekend. I know this was meant to be for just us and even though you'll be busy tomorrow afternoon, I still appreciate you being okay with it. Brad has been kind of down lately because he didn't get a housing assignment for our senior year and he's going to have to live in the bin until something frees up. I would toootally just have him move in with Lexie and I but we only have two bedrooms. Anyway, thanks for being so understanding all of the time." Sue said as she beamed at Sean.

"Don't worry about it, Suzy Q. I'm just happy that you're here with me. That's all that matters." Sean said, thinking over what she had said about Brad. Sean lived in a nearby off campus 2 bedroom apartment with a roommate who he had just so happened to find out wasn't going to be returning for the next school year. "You know...my roommate, Trevor, just told me last week that he isn't going to be coming back this year. I have no idea why he didn't tell me sooner but it is what it is I guess. Anywho... I have an extra room available." He continued.

"REALLY?" Sue asked a little too loudly, catching the attention of a nearby table. She covered her mouth and mouthed 'I'm sorry' to the other couple and continued speaking at an indoor volume. Brad and Sean had always been friendly towards each other but Sue wasn't exactly sure that she could call them friends since they didn't spend any time together on their own. "So...do you think Brad could move in with you this year? He would be totally stoked to not end up in the bin. I'm going to text him!" Sue said as she reached for her phone. Sean gently placed his hand on her's to calm her down so that he could take a minute to think before committing to a year long roommate agreement. Sean mulled it over in his head, knowing that they would get along fine. On the other hand, he secretly longed to have privacy in his apartment since him and Sue rarely were able to have a minute alone when they were in school. A brilliant thought popped into his head and his eyes widened in excitement.

"Sue, I totally wouldn't mind living with Brad for the year...buuuut...what if there is another solution?" Sean started to say, hoping that she would read between the lines. Oblivious to Sean's hint, Sue's eyes narrowed while she tried to piece together what he was trying to say. Noticing her confusion, Sean attempted to clarify what he was saying. "Move in with me." He said simply. His heart began to pound in his chest after what he said. After spending the past few weeks worrying about scaring Sue away with a proposal, he had just blurted out this request without much thinking. Sue's mouth gaped open in surprise.

"Wh-... _me_?" Sue asked. She truly wasn't expecting something like this to happen so soon. Her heart was jumping for joy but her brain was creating images of an angry father, scolding her and Sean. She had to admit that they already spent several nights together in the same bed and it was quite inconvenient to have to go back and forth between both apartments all of the time. "I'm not sure..." She said and Sean took a deep breath before looking back down at his plate so she wouldn't see the hurt in his eyes.

"I understand...I'm sorry if I came across too strong...but I understand if you don't want to live with me..." He said without looking up from his plate. He was feeling a little defeated at this point and completely erased the possibility of a proposal off of his agenda for the weekend. Sue searched for the right words to say but they didn't come. Fortunately for her, the server came by to take their dessert orders. Sue ordered the chocolate lava cake and Sean ordered a slice of cheesecake. He originally thought about asking for Sue's hand in marriage over dessert. He had even considered secretly asking the server to have 'Marry me' written in chocolate syrup on her dessert plate...but at this moment he was glad that he didn't ask.

"Sean...it's not that I don't want to. I love you. I love you sooooo much that it hurts. I just need to think about it is all." Sue said as she reached for his hand across the table. Sean smiled lightly, feeling a little bit better than he was feeling a few minutes prior. They didn't say much after that and before they knew it, their desserts were delivered to the table and they ate them. Sean paid for the bill and they left the restaurant. Sean took Sue's hand in his and she leaned into him as they walked down the Las Vegas strip, taking in the lights and their surroundings. The streets were flooded with people walking around and admiring the same sights. Sean still thought about their conversation at the restaurant. He hadn't even thought of asking Sue to move in with him, but now that he had asked, he wished more than ever that she would say yes. He imagined them sharing breakfast with one another before heading off in their separate directions for work and school. He imagined them curling up together in bed after a long day, talking about their days and enjoying being in each others arms. The more he thought about it, the more it sounded like a marriage. Just as that thought crossed his mind, they walked by a typical Las Vegas wedding chapel where a pair of slightly tipsy newlyweds emerged from the front door. The bride was carrying a bouquet of flowers and the groom had a bottle of wine in his hand. Sue stopped walking and just stared at the chapel and the tipsy but happy looking couple as they skipped hand and hand away from the chapel. Sean wondered what was going through her mind but didn't want to pry, or risk saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Sue led them into the direction of a nearby bench and the two of them sat down, facing the direction of the chapel.

"I never thought I would live with a guy...or...do other things with a guy until I was married. Don't get me wrong, I don't regret ANYTHING that we have done so far. It has all just been so amazing and I am soooo happy to be with you...and I know I want to be with you forever...I guess I just sort of let myself down a little since I had a set of morals once and I feel like I let them go a little bit." Sue sighed and rested her head on Sean's shoulder. Another newly wed couple emerged from the chapel and Sue wondered how many of these weddings happened each day since it hadn't even been 5 minutes since they saw the first couple.

"I get what you're saying, Suzy Q. It's like you have a plan for your whole life set up and then something happens in the middle of it and everything changes. And it's not necessarily bad. I mean for me it has been absolutely fantastic. But it's different and takes some getting used to. To be honest, I always planned on waiting too...until marriage...I don't know if it's a family thing or just because I was never in a big hurry to settle down so waiting didn't seem like a big deal...but you've changed my life...in the best way possible...and I don't even want to imagine living in a world where you and I aren't together." Sean said. He leaned down to kiss the top of Sue's head. Sue wiped a happy tear from her eye and leaned up to kiss Sean gently on the lips. Sue giggled and pulled away. Sean smiled at her and put his arm around her as he leaned against the back of the bench. People were still walking all around them but in this moment, they felt like they were in their own private world.

"It's kind of funny actually. For a while now I've been wondering what things would be like...if we were to get married. Like, our moms have totally lost it and they are already planning every detail it seems. We won't even be able to plan our own wedding...and you know how much I like to plan things." Sue said. She wondered to herself why she hadn't started a binder yet for their future wedding. "I think I'd rather just be like these people." She pointed at the chapel. "They are just all on their own, in love and happy. That's all I want." She said. Sean took this as a sign and turned to look at Sue with a very serious look on his face. Sue noticed the seriousness on his face and worried that she had upset him in some way. "I-I'm sorry...here I am rambling about our future wedding and I'm sure you're not even close to thinking about that right now." She stammered and laughed nervously.

"Sue. We could be like those people." He said. Sue tilted her head in confusion but her mind became instantly clear when she saw Sean pull out the small velvet box from his pocket. He got down on one knee while Sue remained seated on the bench. Sue gasped loudly and covered her mouth with her hands in surprise. When Sean opened the box, Sue could clearly see the absolutely gorgeous, perfect ring sparkling, looking like it was made especially for her. A wide smile spread across Sean's face. Her reaction was exactly what he had hoped for. Her eyes moved from the ring to Sean's eyes. He stared into her beautiful eyes for what felt like an eternity. Sue reached toward the ring box but Sean pulled it away from her. "Nah uh...you have to say yes first." He joked. "Suzy-Q. Will you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?" He asked.

"YES. YES. OH MY GOSH SEAN! YES!" Sue screamed and she threw herself into his arms. He squeezed her tightly and then pulled back just enough to kiss her. He kissed her passionately, the world slowly disappearing around them. Sue pulled back for a minute. "Wait, can we do it here? Now?" Sue asked and looked down at her summer floral dress with a disapproving glance. "I should have packed a nicer dress." Sue said. Sean just laughed.

"Sue. I would marry you even if you were wearing your Panda sweater and bumblebee pants." He said before kissing her again. Sue broke away again.

"Hey...what's wrong with my panda sweater?" She jokingly asked before returning to kissing Sean.

"Absolutely nothing." Sean laughed and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Sue's ear. He nudged his head in the direction of the chapel with a smile. "I'm ready if you're ready." Sean said, still beaming at her.

"I love you soooo much, Sean." Sue said as she reached for his hand.

"I love you too Suzy Q. Forever." He said while he took her hand, kissed it, and then laced his fingers with hers.

"Forever." Sue repeated as they walked hand in hand into the chapel.


	16. Vegas 4

A/N: Well I wrote a lot more than I expected to today between this chapter and the last. I hope you are all happy with the way it turned out. I wasn't really sure where I was going to go with it, but I tried to make it as realistic as possible. Anyway, let me know what you think!

As Sean and Sue walked hand and hand into the chapel, they noticed a line of other couple waiting for their ceremonies. The chapel looked like a miniature version of the church in Orson. The decor was on the older side. There were pews on both sides of the chapel with a podium located front and center. The carpet was due for an update and was a little bit on the dingy side, not much unlike the carpet Sue was used to at home. There were bouquets of pink artificial flowers on the end of each pew and a larger pink and purple pot of flowers located in the front of the chapel. There were candles lit near where the officiant was standing. A couple could be seen exchanging vows when they walked in, but they were too far away to be able to hear anything in the lobby. After taking in the surroundings, Sue noticed a middle aged woman sitting at a desk near the entrance. When they made eye contact, the woman signaled for Sean and Sue to come over to her desk so that she could help them.

"How can I help you two lovebirds this evening?" Asked the woman in a polite voice. Sue noticed that her eyes looked pretty tired and guessed that the woman must have been working there most of the day, since the chapel claimed to be open 24/7.

"Umm...one...wedding...please?" Sue asked, sounding like she was placing an order for a fast food hamburger. Sean heard the uncertainty in her voice but figured it was just because this whole situation was very sudden and a little bit weird. The woman chuckled and handed them a list of ceremony options to look over. The packages ranged from $20 to $1000+ depending on how many add ons they wanted. Sue turned the paper so Sean could examine it as well. He shrugged his shoulders, unsure of which option to choose. Sue pointed at the cheapest one since she was used to being frugal and Sean nodded in agreement. "I guess we'll just go with this one." Sue told the woman, passing the paper back to her.

"Alrighty then. I'm just going to need to see your marriage license and photo IDs." The woman told them. Sean and Sue exchanged a look and realized they had no idea what they were doing at this point.

"Oh...I didn't know we needed a marriage license here but that makes sense." Sue told the woman, feeling slightly embarrassed that she didn't even take 5 minutes to Google the process of getting married in Las Vegas. Luckily for her, the chapel experienced this dilemma on a regular basis and they were prepared to handle it.

"Not a problem. The Marriage License Bureau is open until midnight and we have a shuttle that can take you there if you're interested." The woman told them as she pointed in the direction of the sign that marked the shuttle meeting spot. Sue looked at Sean for his approval.

"Thank you, ma'am." Sean said courteously. He placed his arm around Sue's shoulders and turned her into the direction of the shuttle.

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea..." Sue began to say and Sean just smiled.

"Obviously I didn't know any better either. It's not like I've done this before. Maybe I should have asked the Ax-man how to do it." Sean joked since Axl had made a rash decision to get married to April in the past. He still didn't know much about that whole situation and never felt like it was right to ask about it.

"Oh my God...if Axl knew would we were doing now he would kill me...or you." Sue laughed, but she felt a little bit guilty that she was going behind everyone's back like he did. The shuttle pulled up to the side of the road and Sean turned to face Sue just as the doors were opening.

"Are you sure you want to do this? We don't have to do it this minute if you don't want to..." Sean asked sincerely. Sue just shook her head and put her hands on Sean's face.

"I want to." She said. Sean kissed her softly and stepped into the shuttle first, taking her hand to assist her into the seat next to him. As the shuttle driver began the short trip to the Marriage License Bureau, he began to ask Sean and Sue some questions about their relationship and decision to get married in Vegas. The conversation only made Sue feel more at ease since the driver was used to chatting with couples in similar situations on a daily basis. They arrived at the bureau and stepped out of the shuttle. Sean handed the driver a generous tip and the driver thanked him and agreed to wait outside to take them back to the chapel afterwards. They were no longer in the glitz and glamour of the Las Vegas strip and the bureau was just your every day multiple story brick office building. They went inside and there were 2 other couples in line before them. Sue noticed the sign that read _Government Photo ID required_ and she reached for her purse to look for her ID. Sean reached for his own wallet from his back pocket and pulled out his driver's license. Sue caught a glimpse of his license picture and couldn't believe that he managed to look attracted even for that picture. She looked at her own ID and cringed at her stringy hair and retainer that she had forgotten to take out before she had the picture taken. Sean noticed it and a slow smile spread across his face. Sue tried to hide it from his view put he playfully reached for it and took it out of her hand. "Hey!" She squealed and he just laughed.

"Don't worry Suzy Q. I always knew that one day you would be mine, even back when you still had a mouth full of braces." Sean playfully poked her nose, causing Sue to laugh. She grabbed the ID back from him and shoved it in her pocket. Sue noticed that one of the couple's had disappeared and now there was only one more couple in line in front of them. She began to feel nervous and thought back to how angry her parents had been when they found out that Axl got married to April behind everyone's backs. Deep down, Sue knew that this was different. Everyone in her family already knew and loved Sean. Her mom had even been planning out their wedding before there was even an engagement. Sue wondered if this would hurt her friends and family that had been so supportive of her all of this time, but at the same time, she wanted to have this special moment between just her and Sean. After all, it was her love life and she was old enough to make this decision.

"Is everything okay, Sue?" Sean asked when he noticed that she seemed to be lost in her thoughts.

"Yeah...I was just thinking that I hope people don't get mad at us over this..." Sue said.

"They might." Sean said simply.

"Should I at least mention this to Brad and Lexie since they came to Vegas with us? But if I tell them they are going to want to be here...or Lexie will tell Axl and the whole world will find out and blow up my phone all night..." Sue rambled.

"It's not too late to back out of this if you don't want to do this. I mean, even if we get the license here you still don't have to go through with the cermony. You would tell me if you didn't want to, right?" Sean asked, his voice full of concern.

"Of course. And I know that I want to...I just don't want to hurt anyone..." Sue worried.

"I know what you mean...by the way...my mom knows that I wanted to propose to you this weekend...and I'm pretty sure she already told your mom so there's a good chance your family knows that we are at least engaged." Sean said. Sue began beaming at the sound of the word 'engaged.' Neither of them had much of a chance to even let it sink in that they were engaged. A look of recognition crossed Sue's face.

"Ohhhhh, that explains all of those weird texts from my mom..." Sue said.

"Yeah. You know...only if this is okay with you and you are 100% sure that you want to get married to me, tonight, in Las Vegas...you didn't have any alcohol at dinner did you?" Sean asked before continuing. Sue laughed and shook her head 'no.' Sean continued. "We don't necessarily have to tell anyone." Sean suggested. Sue mused at the thought and wondered if she could keep this a secret.

"I'm listening, go on." Sue said with a smile.

"You said it yourself that our moms were taking over every aspect of the wedding plans even before there was an engagement, right?" He said. Sue nodded in agreement.

"Right." She said.

"Well...what if we just let them roll with it? We could get married here, between us, but when we get home we can let everyone know that we got engaged...which is 100% true. Then we can come up with a date...or rather...whatever date our parents have already selected for us..." Sean continued.

"I believe the date they've already chosen is sometime in May." Sue said as she rolled her eyes, remembering that her mom had sent her a link to available dates for one of the venue's she liked. Sean laughed.

"Well, in May then...we can have whatever ceremony is planned for us and we can celebrate with all of our friends and family. No one needs to know that technically, we'll already be married...and everyone will be happy...except maybe your dad who I think secretly wants to kill me." Sean joked. Even though Sean had already had a discussion about this with his future father in law, he still had a lingering amount of fear that he couldn't shake away. He assumed it was justified because even Sean didn't think he was worthy of Sue. He held the utmost respect for her and was thankful for every day he got to spend with the love of his life.

"Wow. I never thought I would be okay with being deceptive but...that is an AH-MAZING plan!" Sue said excitedly. It was true, she didn't like to lie to the people she loved. At the same time, she spent much of her life being one of the forgotten children...living in the shadows of her older brother and being underappreciated for everything she always did for everyone else. This time, she wanted to put her own feelings first. Sean pulled her closer to him for one last kiss before they were called up to the clerk's window. The clerk handed them a form to fill out and Sean and Sue passed their IDs through the window along with a credit card to pay for the license fee. In less than 5 minutes, the form was filled out and they were on their way out the door with their marriage license in hand. The shuttle was still outside as promised and Sean helped Sue back into the van. The driver once again congratulated them on their engagement and marriage plans and Sean handed him another tip as they stepped out of the van upon arriving back at the chapel. Sean noticed a nearby stand selling fresh cut flowers nearby and held up a finger to Sue and whispered 'be right back' to her as he quickly darted over to the stand. He purchased a colorful arrangement of flowers and just as quickly returned to Sue's side, handing the arrangement to her. Sue squealed with happiness and sniffed the fragrant flowers. She leaned over them to plant a kiss on Sean's cheek which caused him to blush unexpectedly, probably due to the excitement of everything happening around them. The pair went back to the front desk and spoke with the same woman who had greeted them just about an hour ago. They reviewed the selection of options and this time, Sean pointed at one of the packages that included a few photos, a wedding cake for two, and a pair of engraved champagne flutes that were to be shipped to their home at a later date. Sue nodded in agreement and passed the marriage license and their photo IDs to the woman at the desk. The woman wished them luck in their future lives together and showed them where to wait for their turn. Sue noticed Sean's hand was starting to get a little sweaty and wondered if he was having second thoughts. She pulled her hand away to wipe it off on her dress...disgusted at herself for doing such a thing...and Sean noticed the action.

"Sorry...I'm just really excited and a little bit nervous." Sean said with a smile, wiping his own hands on his pants so that Sue wouldn't feel badly for doing it herself.

"Me too. But I can't wait to be officially yours forever." Sue said to reassure him. Sean beamed at her and squeezed her hand.

"Oh, by the way, I never did get an answer on whether or not you want to move in with me." Sean laughed, already knowing the answer but wanting to hear it.

"Hmmm...Yeah I think that's a possibility." Sue grinned. "Although I still don't know how my family would react. How long do you think I could keep THAT a secret?" Sue wondered.

"Uhhhhh...given the amount of times my mom randomly pops up unannounced at my apartment, I would say maybe 3 days." Sean laughed. Sue cringed at the thought of having to bring that up to her parents, but figured she could worry about that another time. This moment was just for them. Before they knew it, they were called into the chapel and stood before the officiant. There wasn't a formal entry for Sue since it was just the two of them, but she was okay with that. Sue and Sean held hands as they stood across from each other at the alter. The officiant asked if they had written their own vows and Sue shook her head, but was surprised to see Sean nodding across from her. He pulled one hand away from hers and reached into the pocket of his shirt to reveal a post it with a few lines written on it. He glanced over the written text and shook his head at it, deciding that he didn't need to read how he was feeling off of a piece of paper. He crumpled it up and tossed it aside, but feeling guilty about making a mess, he held a finger up to Sue asking her to 'hold on' and he bent down to pick up his trash and shoved it into his pocket before reaching for both of her hands again. Sue smiled at his thoughtfulness and knew that this was the Sean Donahue she knew and loved. With a quick clearing of his throat, Sean began to speak.

"Sue. I never expected that this was going to happen this weekend, but I am so glad that it is. I have loved you for as long as I can remember. I know that it took us a ridiculously long time to realize that, but I have never been happier than I have been during these past 8 months since we've been together. I wish I could go back in time so that I could have told you sooner, but I can't do that. All I can do is promise to be the best I can for you, for us, from here on out. You are truly my better half and I can't imagine being anywhere else but here with you." Sean said. Tears were running down Sue's face and Sean swiftly pulled a napkin from his pocket and dabbed the tears away, making Sue smile.

"Sean, you are amazing and I love you so much. I don't know how I ended up being so lucky and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you. I hope you know that I will always be here for you, no matter what. We've come so far in such a short amount of time and I know that our future together is just going to be perfect despite our crazy timing and even crazier families." Sue replied. She noticed a tear on Sean's cheek and wondered if she had ever seen him cry before. It was heartwarming to know that he cared for her as much as he did. He smiled at her as the officiant went on with some generic vows to complete the ceremony. After they said 'I do' Sean and Sue shared the most gentle, loving kiss that warmed their bodies from head to toe. A few staff members and a photographer were barely noticed in the background while they were lost in each other's arms. When they finally did break away, Sue noticed even more tears in Sean's eyes and grabbed the same napkin he had given her earlier and wiped them away from his face. Sean laughed at this and pulled her petite body towards him in a tight embrace. Sue wrapped her arms around his torso and squeezed him tightly in return. Finally they were able to hear the sounds of the staff members clapping nearby and congratulating them on their marriage. One of the staff members handed them their wedding cake in a pretty cardboard box and a paper explaining that their pictures would be delivered to their hotel room the next day. Sean leaned down to kiss Sue on the top of her head and she leaned up to kiss him on the lips again. He smiled and leaned down to whisper into her ear so that no one else could hear them.

"Do you want to go and...celebrate?" Sean whispered and Sue nodded her head furiously. They quickly thanked the staff members, collected their cake, flowers, and other belongings and dashed out of the door as excitedly as couples they had watched earlier that night. Sean took Sue's hand in his and looked in both directions, trying to remember which direction was the right way back to their hotel. Once he had his footing, he pulled her in the correct direction and the two of them began almost jogging, weaving their way in between the crowds of people.

It seemed like it had taken an eternity to get back to the hotel even though it only took them a few minutes to get there from the nearby chapel. Sean deadbolted the door and quickly threw his suit jacket into the corner of the room. Sue carefully placed the cake and flowers on the table and kicked off her shoes, he feet aching from running in her 'fancy' shoes which were nothing more than wedge sandals. Sean sat down on the edge of the bed and Sue stood in front of him, her hands wrapped around his neck. He wrapped his arms around her torso and she began lightly kissing his neck. He breathed heavily with anticipation and excitement from the evening and slid his hands underneath her dress and gently caressed her bare skin. Sue kissed along his ear and jawline before reaching his mouth and began to kiss him feverishly. She started to unbutton his shirt and when she finished, she pushed it back so his arms could slide out of it. Next, she reached for the hem of his undershirt and pulled it off over his head. She ran her hands across his bare torso and he kissed her more passionately than she had ever experienced before. In one swift motion, Sean pulled Sue's light, summer dress off over her head so that she was just wearing her undergarments. Sue tugged at the belt of his pants and when it was free, she undid the button and zipper before pulling off the rest of his clothes and throwing them aside to an unknown destination. Sean broke away momentarily so that he could lie down fully on the bed. Sue crawled on top of him and he lowered her onto him. He removed the rest of her clothes and tossed them aside before she pressed her bare body against his. In one simple movement, they fit together perfectly and the experience felt even better than their first time. For the first time, they knew what it felt like to be tied to your soulmate permanently, and it was the best feeling ever.


	17. Vegas 5

Sue awoke in the morning to the sound of the shower running. She turned to see that Sean was no longer in bed next to her and assumed he was getting ready to attend the conference, which was the original intention of this trip to Vegas. She slowly sat up and wrapped herself in a fuzzy bathrobe before stepping into a pair of old slippers she brought from home. She noticed the cake box sitting on the table, untouched, and her eyes grew comically wide as the thoughts of the previous night ran through her mind. It really happened. They got married just hours after landing in Las Vegas. She opened the box to look at the cake for the first time and it simply had _Congratulations_ written across the top, with a generic plastic wedding cake topper of a bride and groom. She smiled at the sight of it and turned to make sure no one was watching before she dipped her finger into the icing and licked it off. Of course, that was the moment that Sean stepped into view, wearing a towel, to catch her red handed. Sue promptly wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and closed the box.

"Good morning, Sue Sue Donahue." Sean said. At the same time, they both cocked their heads, noticing for the first time how her new full name sounded.

"I _really_ should have changed my middle name when I had the chance." Sue laughed and Sean stepped closer to her to give her a hug. When he let her go, he pulled a fresh set of clothes from his luggage and sighed.

"I'm so sorry that I have to go to this stupid conference. I really wish I could just spend the day here with you, Suzy Q." Sean said.

"I know...it's okay though. Brad and Lexie will probably be wanting me to go out with them this afternoon anyway since I didn't see them at all last night. I was sort of busy." She smiled. Sean nodded as he pulled on a pair of boxer shorts, dropping the towel to the floor and Sue couldn't help but catch a passing glimpse before we was fully covered. Sean grinned when he noticed her checking him out and wished that he had more time to stay.

"About that. Last night was...amazing for me Sue. It really was...and I can't even tell you how happy I am right now." He said.

"Same here. I just don't know how I'm going to manage to keep my mouth shut. I just keep thinking about how I should even tell people that we are 'engaged.'" She continued, opening the cake box once again to take another taste of the buttercream frosting. She assumed she picked up this habit from her mom who always had cans of frosting stashed around the house.

"Everything will be okay. We can even tell everyone together if that's easier for you...or you can tell whoever you want. It's up to you." Sean smiled as he finished getting dressed and laced his shoes. Sue took comfort in knowing that they were already comfortable enough around each other to get dressed in front of one another without feeling embarrassed or shy.

"I'll figure something out. Anyway, I hope your conference goes okay today. I can't wait to see you tonight." Sue said as she walked Sean to the door of the hotel room. He pulled her close one more time and pressed his lips to hers and lightly stroked her cheek.

"I love you." He said before opening the door.

"Not as much as I love you." She replied.

"Doubt it." He said simply with a wink before shutting the door behind him. Sue sighed happily and leaned against the door after he was gone. She wondered if every morning would be like this when they lived together.

After a quick shower and changing into a pair of shorts and a blue blouse, Sue heard a series of eager knocks on the door and she peeked through the peephole to see Lexie on the other side. Before opening it, Sue looked around the room and covered the cake box and the rest of the evidence of the night before with Sean's jacket. Moderately pleased at the outcome of her cover up, Sue opened the door and was greeted with a big hug from Lexie.

"Hey Sue! How was your night? Brad and I had the BEST dinner ever at the buffet. Oh my gosh, I can't believe how much I ended up eating. I must look like a bloated cow right now." Lexie rambled. Sue looked at her friend to see her still petite figure unchanged from the day before.

"Hey! Last night was...great! Sue looked from side to side in the hallway in search of Brad but didn't see him there. "Where's Brad?" Sue asked.

"Oh, he went to stand in line for tickets for some show that he wanted us to watch this afternoon. I hope that's okay with you?" Lexie asked.

"Yeah! That sounds perfect! I was wondering what we were going to do this afternoon but a show sounds like fun." Sue said.

"Now that we have a minute alone Sue...there's actually something I kind of want to talk to you about..." Lexie said while nervously twirling a strand of her long hair.

"Oh really?" Sue wondered if she somehow found out about the night before. But how could she? She wasn't there. What if they happened to walk by and see her and Sean by the chapel? Sue tried to calm herself without blurting out a round of apologies and was grateful that her thoughts were interrupted by another series of knocks on the door. Lexie and Sue both turned to the door, assuming that it would be Brad. When Sue went to answer it, she noticed an unfamiliar young woman standing on the other side of the door holding a large cardboard envelope.

"H-hello, can I help you?" Sue asked quietly. Lexie was still seated on the edge of the bed out of hearing range.

"Mrs..." The woman looked down to read the text on the envelope. "Donahue? These are your pictures from last night. I want to take this opportunity once again to say congratulations!" She said a little too loudly. Sue's eyes widened and she grabbed the envelope from the woman's hand.

"Oh, thank you, thank you...I appreciate it. I'm sorry but I have to go, thank you again." Sue whispered. The woman nodded and stepped away as Sue closed the door. She set the envelope on the table and tried to slide it underneath Sean's jacket.

"Congratulations? For what?" Lexie asked, wondering what her friend was up to.

"Oh...it was just...something from last night it's not a big deal and so on and so forth and what have you. So what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?" Sue asked. Lexie was fully aware that Sue was lying, but bigger thoughts were on her mind right now and she needed to get it off of her chest.

"Well...last night..." Lexie began. Sue felt her hands begin to feel sweaty and her heart was racing. This was it. She knew. Sue didn't know how, but she just knew that the secret was out, but she didn't say anything.

"Last night..." Sue urged Lexie to continue.

"Okay...I wasn't lying about the buffet. It was totally amazing! But after a while I started feeling really sick...and Brad was totally fine even though we ate exactly the same food, but I've been feeling a little weird lately and so after he went to bed...I snuck out and went to the drugstore to get a...test...and it...came back...positive." Lexie stammered.

"A test..." Sue repeated, initially confused about where she was going with this but then was instantly struck by an intense moment of clarity. "Oh...OH...oh my gosh. I...WOW." Sue spat out.

"Yeah...do you hate me? I totally understand if you hate me...please don't tell anyone...no one knows...not even Axl...I have no idea what to do or what to say...I'm not good at keeping secrets!" Lexie cried. Sue leaned closer to her friend and hugged her, feeling relieved that she didn't know the truth, but this was a much bigger dilemma than her own secret.

"Of course I don't hate you...I just...wow. I don't know what to say." Sue said. Sue just sat there at let Lexie talk about how she was feeling for a while and she did her best to comfort her. She wondered if her and Sean had been careful enough, but with his job at the clinic he was always obsessed over making sure they were fully protected. On top of it all, Sue had been taking birth control for quite some time now as an added precaution. Sue wondered if she should share her own secret with Lexie since Lexie was pouring her heart out to her.

"Lexie...you're not the only one with a secret." Sue began.

"What? Oh my God you too? How long have you..." Lexie said.

"No...no...it's not that." Sue explained.

"Oh thank God...I think your parents would drop dead of a heart attack if both of us were..." Lexie said. Sue chuckled and nodded in agreement.

"You have to promise me that you won't tell anyone. It's not the right time...and I don't want you to be mad at me either but I understand if you are." Sue said. Lexie held out her pinky to offer a pinky swear with her close friend. Sue linked pinkies with Lexie's and they sealed the pact. Sue was grateful that she had met Lexie when she was applying to Sororities. Who would have known that she would become more like a sister to her, maybe she even _would_ be her sister one day. Sue smiled at the thought.

"Okay...well...here it goes." Sue exhaled sharply. "Last night after dinner...Sean and I were having a pretty serious conversation and he maaaaay have proposed." Sue said.

"WHAT!" Lexie shrieked. "What do you mean MAY have?! Tell me EVERYTHING!" Lexie yelled.

"Okay...he did...he definitely did." Sue held up her ring finger to reveal her engagement ring. Lexie gasped and admired it. Even though it wasn't the kind of ring she would want, she thought it was absolutely perfect for Sue.

"OH MY GOD! YOU'RE ENGAGED!" Lexie yelled as she pulled her friend in for a hug but then she pulled back. "Wait...why would that be a secret...and why would I be mad at you? I'm confused. Isn't this _good_ news?" Lexie inquired.

"Yes, of course it's good news...buuuut there's a little bit more to the story." Sue began.

"Well, I did say I wanted to hear everything...so go on...dish, girl!" Lexie pleaded.

"Okay...well...we were having a pretty serious conversation and we just happened to be sitting outside of a chapel watching a bunch of couples getting married and we...kind of sort of may have...eloped. Okay. We did. It definitely happened. Oh my God...it happened. I can't believe it happened. I swear it happened." Sue blurted out so quickly that if Lexie were anyone else, she probably wouldn't have understood a word of it. Sue ran over to the envelope of pictures and pulled it out to reveal it to Lexie, tossing the pictures one by one on the bed without looking at them. She then ran over to the pile of hidden evidence and uncovered it to reveal everything. Lexie just stared in awe and held one of the pictures up close to her face.

"Oh...my...God you did! WOW. I can't...just WOW." Lexie said in utter shock. She thought HER news was surprising, but for Sue this was completely unexpected. Sue had always been the type to think, think, and overthink every little detail about everything but it seemed like when she met Sean, she grew into herself a little more and became more of a free spirit, an even happier Sue.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't tell ANYONE...and I'm not planning on telling anyone else...we kind of want to just tell everyone that we are engaged so they won't get mad. Are you mad? Oh God you probably hate me now and you're like a sister to me. How could I be so selfish?" Sue cried.

"Sue...relax...breathe." Lexie started. Sue took a deep breath and sat down on the bed next to Lexie, picking up one of the pictures herself and looking at it. Anyone could see how happy both Sean and Sue looked in that moment and she knew deep down that she made the right choice. "I don't hate you...if you're happy, I'm happy. Besides...if anything I'm probably going to be the one taking the heat from your family once they find out I'm...you know...but getting married? To the guy you love? Who could be mad at that?" Lexie reassured Sue.

"Do you really think so?" Sue asked.

"I do. But if you want to keep it a secret for now, I totally understand. I won't say a word to anyone...as long as you don't tell anyone about my situation...I mean I will have to tell people eventually but not right now. You get it, right?" Lexie pleaded.

"Cross my heart, hope to die." Sue stated with a dorky solute. Lexie laughed and hugged her friend.

"So...is that cake that I see over there? I definitely could go for some cake right about now." Lexie said.

"Me too. Definitely need some cake." Sue responded while she got up to cut slices for herself and Lexie.

Sue's phone vibrated on the bed and Lexie glanced at the text that appeared on the lock screen.

"You know...if you're going to keep this a secret you're going to need to be a little bit more careful with your phone settings." Lexie laughed as she held up the phone to Sue, revealing a text that read _I miss you, my beautiful bride._ Sue took the phone and held it to her chest.

"I am sooo screwed." Sue said with a mouth full of cake. Lexie just nodded and laughed.


	18. Chapter 18

"I still just CAN NOT believe it!" Brad declared to Lexie as he sipped his complimentary in flight beverage. They were on their way home from Las Vegas and had managed to snag the same flight as Sean and Sue this time, but they weren't able to sit near each other so they broke into pairs. The previous day, Sue had spent the majority of the day with Brad and Lexie exploring the Las Vegas strip, watching a few shows, and indulging at one of the incredible, famous buffets. Brad still was completely unaware of the secrets that Lexie and Sue had shared earlier that morning, but the three of them did discuss the possibility of a change in living arrangements, that being Sue wanting to move in with Sean and Brad taking her place in Lexie's apartment.

"I know! You just can't tell anyone yet." Lexie whispered even though it wasn't like anyone else they knew would hear them at this particular moment. "She hasn't told anyone yet and her parents would totally freak if they found out she was going to move in with Sean." Lexie explained. Brad simply nodded in a 'no duh' sort of way. He wasn't one to blabber his best friend's secrets to the world.

"I'm just wondering how it's all going to work out. They are going to find out eventually, probably won't even take THAT long since they seem to come around pretty often for this and that." Brad wondered. It was true. Frankie, Mike, and Nancy were prone to showing up unannounced since their college campus was only 42 minutes away from Orson. For Sue, it wasn't so much that her parents were overprotective but they would come by occasionally to take her out for dinner or a drink and catch up on how school was going. Plus, it gave them an excuse to get out of the house for a change and away from Axl's pile of smelly socks.

"I don't know, I know my parents would be pretty pissed if I moved in with Axl, even though now I'm currently pr..." Lexie stopped herself. Brad tilted his head. "...pr...pretty much with him all of the time anyway." Lexie finished. She did want to tell Brad about her situation, but now wasn't the right time, especially since she still needed to talk to Axl. She knew that this would eventually impact their living arrangements as well during their last year of school, but she decided not to worry about it right now because there were more important things to take care of first.

"Yeah...maybe it's not that big of a deal...they'll probably end up getting married before you know it anyway." Brad joked. Lexie laughed uncomfortably and shifted in her seat. She turned to face forward and buried herself in the free magazine that was in the seat back pocket in front of her. Meanwhile, on the other side of the plane, Sue and Sean sat next to each other in comfortable silence. Sue was admiring the view from the the window and when she turned to look at her boyfriend, she noticed he seemed lost in whatever he was looking at on his phone.

"Whatcha doing?" Sue asked as she leaned to peak at his screen. Sean shook his head like he was coming out of a trance and smiled before kissing Sue on the cheek.

"Oh! Sorry...I was just reading this thing I found online. Actually, you should check it out. I know we didn't really...research...a whole lot about anything before this weekend." He furrowed his eyebrows and Sue chuckled in response. "But anyway, I just found out that our 'change in status' will probably affect our financial aid. In a good way!" He continued. Sue was taken aback that he was already looking into these things but she was grateful. She had never been good at staying on top of financial aid and the whole thing was just a big confusing mess to her.

"Really? I didn't even realize it would make a difference...although I have to admit that I haven't been thinking a lot about things like that...we probably should have." Sue laughed nervously. She didn't regret eloping with Sean, but she was starting to realize that she may have not been ready for all of the changes that were about to happen between finances, living arrangements, name changes, and all of the other things that went along with getting married. It was a bit overwhelming for her since just a week ago she had little more to worry about than buying her books for her classes. Sean noticed the tension and put his phone away to turn his attention to Sue. He gently massaged her hand and fiddled with the new ring that looked perfect on her dainty finger. He didn't have a wedding ring of his own yet, but he knew he wouldn't be able to wear it yet anyway since this was all a giant secret. He wondered how their families would respond if they just told them the truth, but the thought of it made his stomach feel a little queasy. He was glad he decided to ask for a ginger ale earlier and he took a sip.

"Sorry...I didn't mean to stress you out. We'll figure this all out when we get back." Sean said. He scooted down in his seat and rested his head on Sue's shoulder, looking up at her with his adorable puppy dog eyes, which in that moment Sue thought may have been the cutest thing he ever did. She moved to rest her head on his and decided to bring up a topic of her own while enjoying the closeness.

"Actually, I was thinking about the whole...living together thing." Sue said. Sean was instantly alert and sat up straight, eager to hear what she had to say about the topic.

"Yeah?" He questioned while gazing into her brown eyes. Sue smiled and leaned forward to give him a gentle kiss on the lips, but was interrupted by the passenger in their row, clearing their throat in an attempt to break them up. The passenger rolled their eyes at them and returned to focusing on a newspaper. Sue secretly made a face behind their back and Sean couldn't help but chuckle. Soon he remembered what they were talking about he was back to his serious face.

"Weeeeell...yesterday I talked to Brad and Lexie about it and they seemed to be on board with the plan...if you still want to live with me that is." Sue mocked even though she knew he wanted nothing more than to live with his new wife. Sean was beaming and he squeezed her hand in his. Before he had a chance to speak, Sue continued. "Buuuut." Sean's heart sank. Nothing good ever came after a 'but.' A frown replaced his glowing smile. Sue pulled out her phone to pull up a screenshot she had saved the previous day. "I was wondering if you would consider moving? I know you already have a great place but it's two bedrooms and we probably only need one amiright?" Sue blurted out. Sean's heart began beating at a normal pace once again and he let out a deep breath he didn't know he had been holding in. He took the phone from her hand and looked at the screen which revealed a beautiful, but more affordable, 1 bedroom apartment that happened to be in the same building as her current one, but wasn't quite as fancy.

"Hmm. This looks great but you do realize that once everyone finds out that we are living together that it will be pretty obvious that we are...involved." Sean winked and Sue instantly knew exactly what he was implying. The thought had crossed her mind, but she also realized that no matter how many bedrooms were in their apartment, her family would automatically assume the same thing anyway. She wondered if her family already assumed that they had been intimate, but she didn't really care anymore what they thought of the that. She was old enough to make her own adult decisions.

"That's okay. I mean, we are going to tell them that we are engaged anyway, right? So maybe there's a slight chance that our families won't totally flip out?" Sue said with uncertainty.

"I guess it's just a chance we'll have to take." Sean laughed. "I'm glad you brought this up, by the way. Luckily my lease is just about to end and I haven't renewed it yet since I wasn't sure if I was going to get a replacement roommate anyway and I didn't want to end up in a two bedroom apartment by myself. If it's okay with you, I'm going to send an email right now to see if we can snag this place before it gets snatched up? I know that building is super popular." Sean continued.

"Sounds good to me!" Sue squealed. She was truly excited for this opportunity and was ready to begin the next chapter with the love of her life. Sean put his arm around Sue and she rested her head on his chest, watching him carefully type up an email with his free hand. He leaned down to kiss her on the forehead and she saw the wide smile on his face. She was so glad that he seemed to be just as excited as her.

A/N: Hey all! This chapter is shorter than I originally intended but I usually have more time to write during the weekdays. Hopefully this chapter wasn't too boring as I was trying to squeeze in a few real life issues on their way home from the trip. Next up, they will be back home and moving forward in their relationship. The engagement will be revealed and maybe more. Happy Sunday!


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Thanks again for all of the kind reviews! I hope to update several times this week so stay tuned. Enjoy, my friends :)

Nancy eagerly knocked on the front door of the Heck's house, carrying a plate of homemade cookies. When Frankie opened the door, her eyes widened in delight at the sight of the treats and she ushered Nancy into the house. Before Nancy had even stepped inside, a cookie dangled from Frankie's mouth and she welcomed her neighbor inside.

"Oh Frankie. Sean and Sue should be back from their trip by now. Do you think he went through with it? Did Sue say anything? I sure hope everything went okay. I'm so worried!" Nancy carried on. While Frankie finished chewing, she pulled out her phone to see if she had received any missed called or texts from her daughter, but there weren't any notifications on her screen except for a reminder to meet with one of Brick's teachers before the first day of school. She rolled her eyes when she saw that and wondered if they could get through even one school year without having to have an uncomfortable chat with the faculty of Orson High.

"I haven't heard anything either, but I'm sure everything is fine. If he did ask her I'm sure she was so distracted that she forgot to message us but I wouldn't worry about it." Frankie replied as she reached for another cookie. Mike stepped into view and noticed that the couch was occupied, much to his dismay, but his face softened when he saw the fresh baked cookies sitting on the coffee table.

"Ohhh what do we have here." Mike said as he approached the cookies. "What's going on with you two? You've sure have been spending a lot of time gossiping lately." Mike wondered.

"Oh, we are just talking about...lady stuff!" Frankie lied. She hadn't told Mike or Axl about the possibility of a proposal out of fear that Mike would overreact, but knew he should know sooner or later anyway.

"Don't need to know the details. See you later Nancy." Mike pointed at his cookie and gave a quick 'thank you' nod before ducking out to the garage.

"Maybe I could just invite them over for dinner tonight and see if they have anything to share?" Frankie wondered. It wouldn't be too out of the ordinary to have them over for dinner and she thought she might be able to weasel some information out of her daughter. She pulled out her phone in preparation to call Sue.

"That's a fantastic idea!" Nancy applauded. "Ohhh...I know! How about we have a cookout? Ron has just been dying to try out his new grill. And I can whip up some potato salad in no time!" Nancy said. Frankie jumped at the chance to have more of Nancy's homemade food and quickly dialed Sue's number. To her surprise, Sue answered on the first ring and Frankie put the phone on speakerphone.

 **Frankie: Hi Sue! How was your trip?**

 **Nancy: Hello, dear! We missed you this weekend.**

 **Sue: Oh, hi Mrs. Donahue, hi mom. What's up? Everything is...great!**

Sue worried that somehow they knew what had really happened that weekend but was only moderately surprised that both of her 'moms' were together. Sean made an 'oh no' face and held Sue close to him on the couch of his apartment. Sue shrugged her shoulders and tried to act casual.

 **Nancy: Sue, honey, we're going to have a cookout tonight at our house and wanted to know if you and Sean would come. We would just love to hear all of the details about your trip and Lexie and Brad are welcome to come too!**

Sean nodded in agreement and Sue squeezed his hand.

 **Sue: Sure! That sounds great! See you tonight!**

 **Frankie: Can't wait! Bye bye love you!**

After saying their goodbyes, Sue placed her cell phone on the coffee table and leaned back against Sean's chest.

"So are we going to tell them about the...engagement...tonight?" Sue asked, her voice filled with concern. Sean tried to brush away the tension and gently caressed her cheek with his finger tips.

"I think we should. It will be fine. I did talk to your dad about this a few months ago believe it or not and he didn't completely flip out...but he did say it was too soon...maybe a few months will be enough to change his mind." Sean laughed and nervously scratched the back of his neck.

"What about the apartment? Are we going to tell them about _that._ Oh my God they are just going to kill me when they find out." Sue panicked.

"Sue, don't worry. We're in this together...and we kind of already started moving our stuff into the new place so it's a little too late to back out now." Sean made a sad puppy dog face which by now he learned never failed to make Sue smile. Sue threw her arms around Sean and hugged him tightly.

"You really are the best boyfriend...I mean...husband...that sounds so weird to say. 'I have a husband and his name is Sean.' 'I am married I am a wife.' 'My husband is Sean.' 'Hello, we are the Donahue's.'" Sue rehearsed and Sean burst out laughing.

"Or maybe I am a Heck. Guys can change their names too, you know." Sean suggested and nudged her playfully with his elbow. Sue giggled and threw a throw pillow at him.

"I am so NOT going to make you be a HECK." Sue laughed. She was kidding but at the same time, it was true. She never did mind her name, in fact, she was always proud to be Sue Sue Heck. But she had to admit to herself that the name seemed to come with a streak of bad luck for her entire family. Plus, she did like the way that Sue Sue Donahue rolled off the tongue in the most perfect way. She turned to look at Sean and he was just positively beaming at her. She took this opportunity to crawl onto his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck before leaning forward to kiss him gently. Sean quickly deepened the kiss and he heard Sue sigh into the kiss. He moved his lips to her neck and kissed her there, gently nibbling the skin of her thin body causing her to breathe heavily. It didn't take long before Sean carried her toward the bedroom, their clothes being tossed aside on the way there. He broke the kiss for a moment. "Living together is going to be soo much fun." He said. Sue giggled and quickly resumed kissing him. They had never even brought up the topic of a honeymoon, but they didn't seem to need one by the way things had been going so far in their new marriage.

A few hours later, Sean, Sue, and Lexie were en route to Orson for an impromptu cookout. Sue asked Brad to come but he already had plans. Lexie cheerfully accepted the invitation, especially since it would give her an opportunity to see Axl and also, she had developed a hearty appetite and couldn't wait to stuff her face with some of Nancy Donahue's food.

"So are you ready to...you know." Sean asked Sue, trying to be discrete.

"I'm not sure...and by the way...she knows." Sue said, pointing to Lexie in the back seat who just waved at Sean in the rear view mirror.

"FINALLY. Oh my God I have been dying back here waiting to be able to say something! I am sooooo beyond excited for you two. I can't believe you are _married._ " Lexie squealed. Sean opened his mouth in surprise and turned to look at Sue.

"Yeah...she knows everything." Sue laughed and Sean let out a deep breath. Sue noticed his tension and put her hand on his thigh. "I...is that okay? I'm sorry...I" Sue stammered. Sean shook his head.

"It's okay, Suzy Q. I'm just surprised is all. I didn't know you were going to tell anyone yet...and sometimes it's hard to keep a secret when more people learn the truth." He suggested. Sue nodded in agreement and understood where he was coming from. Sue turned to look at Lexie in the backseat. Lexie mouthed the words 'sorry.' and Sue shrugged it off.

"I won't tell anyone, I swear. We were just...I kind of dropped a bombshell of my own and Sue was trying to make me feel better. And she did. She totally did." Lexie explained. Sean perked his head up in interest and looked at Lexie in the rearview mirror and she nervously met his gaze. "Okay, okay. I'm pregnant. There. Now you know. See? Your secret is no big deal. Now we're even." Lexie argued and pouted in the back seat. Sean was completely caught off guard to the point that he felt the need to pull off to the side of the road for a minute.

"Whoa. Seriously?" He asked as he turned around to look at her face to face, glancing down to see if it was obvious but she looked the same as usual. He couldn't help but think about all of the times that him and Sue had been intimate and wondered if they had been careful enough, but he was pretty sure that they were taking every possible precaution. "Does the Ax-man know? Why didn't he tell me?" Sean wondered.

"He doesn't know. But I'm going to tell him soon so please don't say anything." Lexie pleaded. Sean nodded in agreement and returned his focus to the road before pulling back onto it and continuing their drive. Lexie exhaled deeply and leaned her head back so that she was looking up at the ceiling of the car.

"H...how did it happen?" Sean hesitantly asked but he instantly regretted it.

"You're in med school, seriously? If you don't know then you're in the wrong field." Lexie barked back, but quickly apologized and blamed it on the hormones. They sat in awkward silence for the rest of the ride to Orson.

Surprisingly, the cookout was pretty ordinary and everyone had a great time discussing the trip to Vegas and talking about the upcoming school year. Sue spent much of the time hiding the new ring on her finger, waiting for just the right moment to share the news. After everyone finished eating, Sean's parents, Sue's parents, Axl, Brick, Lexie, Sean, and Sue gathered around a fire pit in the Donahue's back yard, roasting marshmallows and chatting. The sun was almost fully set and the only light came from the glow of the fire. Sue looked at Sean and he gave her a quick 'go ahead' nod as she fiddled with the ring on her finger. She smiled when she realized how in sync they always were and that they had reached the point where they could communicate without words. Sue nervously cleared her throat when there was a break in the conversation and decided that now was as good of a time as any. She stood up from her chair and was grateful for the low lighting to help ease the anxiety of stage fright.

"Um...I...we..." She pointed at Sean and he decided to stand up next to her and take her hand in his. He awkwardly smiled at the group and turned to watch Sue as she spoke. His presence made her feel instantly calm and she took a deep breath before continuing. "We're engaged!" Sue shouted and smiled widely, holding up Sean's hand with hers. Frankie and Nancy quickly jumped up and squealed, bouncing up and down with one another in excitement without paying much attention to Sean and Sue.

"Aaaaand..." Sean began, sensing that the mood was light enough to share the rest. "We're moving in together!" He shouted. He was met with a blank stare from the group and Mike massaged his temples with his fingers.

"You're _what_? No daughter of mine is going to live with...oh my God. She's pregnant. You're pregnant!" Mike said angrily as he stood up. "I'm going to kill him." Mike stated and he began to walk in Sean's direction. Sean backed up and blocked his body with his hands. Sue quickly blocked Sean and pleaded to her dad.

"No..no..no...Dad...stop...I'm not...just STOP." Sue begged.

"Get out of my way Sue." Mike said as he moved her aside. Lexie began to panic, knowing that this was her fate but couldn't stand by and watch her friends take the heat from Mike when she had her own secret. She jumped up and accidentally knocked her chair over in the process.

"I AM." Lexie shouted. Everyone turned to look at her and she looked down at the ground in shame. Lowering her voice to an almost whisper. "I...am...pregnant. I am. Sue isn't. I am." Frankie and Nancy gasped loudly and Axl dropped his soda onto the ground, his mouth gaping wide open in shock.

"What the HELL Axl?!" Mike shouted as he turned his attention to his eldest son who still lived at home. In the past, he had applauded and even encouraged him to be involved with women but he definitely didn't want or expect this outcome. Lexie instantly burst into tears and ran across the street, grateful that Sean's car was still unlocked, and she threw herself into the backseat of his car.

"I...uhhhh...I...uhhhhhh...I DON'T KNOW..." Axl shouted as he ran after his girlfriend. The news was obviously shocking to him and he needed to hear it straight from her and not in front of a crowd. Mike clutched at his chest before he resumed rubbing his temples. He turned to face his daughter.

"Do you see why? THIS is why you don't move in with your _boyfriend._ I don't care if he IS Sean Donahue. It's just not happening." Mike shouted.

"DAD! I am NOT Axl. And newsflash! Axl lives at HOME and this STILL happened. And I'm not a little kid anymore! I am going to live with who I want, where I want and I don't need to ask for your permission. Besides, it's too late. We already signed a lease and we already started moving in." Sue defended. Sean held onto her arm and pleaded at her with his eyes to settle down, but she was too fired up to be calmed.

"No! Absolutely not! Over my dead body!" Mike continued, although he regretted saying that because he was beginning to feel an unfamiliar pain in his chest but tried to shake it off. Nancy finally got the nerve to speak and she made her way over to her son.

"Sean, honey, what has gotten into you?" She said and then lowered her voice to a whisper. "You were just supposed to propose...how did this happen?" Nancy asked her son, but she was still able to be overheard. Frankie bowed her head and hesitantly looked over at her husband who looked absolutely furious.

"You KNEW?" Mike demanded. "You're supposed to tell me these things, Frankie." Mike said.

"I didn't know about _everything._ " Frankie defended. Sean and Sue looked at each other nervously knowing that they definitely couldn't tell them the whole truth right now.

Brick sat in silence, focused on his book and missed pretty much the whole conversation up until this point. It wasn't until he received a text message from his girlfriend, Cindy, that he closed the book and instantly realized he completely forgot that she was supposed to come to the cookout. He quickly shot off a text message, letting her know where he was and a few minutes later, Cindy came into view carrying an opened package. She sat down on an available chair near Brick, completely oblivious to the tension that was hanging in the air when she arrived.

"What's that?" Brick asked her, pointing at the package.

"You told me to meet you at your house at 6 and no one was there, so I waited and this package came so I opened it. I also read your mail. Your electricity is going to be turned off on Wednesday...and Sue is married." Cindy said in the most blunt way possible, passing the package and the mail to Brick. Sean buried his face in his palms and sat down on his lawn chair in defeat. One day. They couldn't even get through one day with this secret. Sue sat down in her own chair and had no idea what she could possibly say in this moment. She could deny it, face it head on, or hope that no one heard Cindy, but it was clear that everyone had. Mike yanked the mail out of Brick's hand, tossing the overdue electric bill on the ground and focusing on the Marriage Certificate that clearly had his daughter's name written on it. He held it up so that Sue could see it and the only thing she could think to do was nervously shrug and wait for the screaming to begin, but it didn't happen. Mike gripped his chest with his hand and began to sweat despite the evening chill in the air. Frankie noticed and instantly appeared at his side but he pushed her away before collapsing to the ground.


	20. Chapter 20

"Mike?...Can you hear me? Mike?" Frankie frantically cried as she sobbed over her husband who was currently passed out in the grass next to the fire pit. Sean ran and fell down onto his knees beside Mike and put his education to use as he checked his vitals. Nancy came running from the house carrying what appeared to be an oversized first aid kid.

"Sean! I have your things! Please help him!" Nancy cried as she passed the bag to Sean. As sirens wailed nearby, Sean rummaged through the bag for supplies and after a quick assessment, began performing CPR. Sue stood nearby crying her eyes out, guilt filling her heart and she was feeling an overwhelming amount of concern for her father, but at this given moment she couldn't even begin to explain out grateful she was to be married to a future doctor. When the paramedics arrived, they took over for Sean and began to load Mike into the ambulance. Sean ran over to his new wife, who was a sobbing mess, and did his best to console her as she cried into his chest. He gently kissed the top of her head and massaged her back, allowing her to let it all out.

"Is dad going to be okay?" Brick asked his frantic mother. She nodded furiously in an attempt to reassure Brick and pulled him next to her. At least one of her kids wasn't growing up too quickly and still needed her. He hugged her as they watched the ambulance pull away. "He'll be okay...he has to be." Frankie said, mostly to reassure herself. She loosened Brick's grip and held onto his hand instead as she pulled him in the direction of the car so that they could meet Mike at the hospital. Brick shot off a quick text message to Axl to let him know what was going on and hoped that he would meet them there.

"We are going to talk about this later...but just go. Your dad and I will clean all of this up. Sue needs you right now." Nancy told Sean and she nudged at them to follow Frankie. Sean nodded, hugged both of his parents and kissed his mom on the cheek before he led Sue to his car. They expected to see Lexie in the car but she was no where to be found. Sue sent her a text to let her know where they would be and Sean and Sue made their way to the hospital.

"How could I be so selfish?" Sue asked herself out loud, not expecting an actual response. Sean looked at her quizzically before returning his focus to the road.

"What do you mean?" Sean asked for clarification. Sue let out a loud sigh and turned to look out the window.

"You saw what I did to my dad. I made a mistake, told him off, and now I don't know if he's going to be okay." Sue ranted.

"...mistake?" Sean asked, his heart sinking in his chest. He knew that they had to pay some consequences for their elopement, but he certainly didn't think of it as a mistake. Sue turned to face him.

"I...I didn't mean it like that." Sue defended. Sean nodded uncertainly and they drove the rest of the way there in uncomfortable silence.

Sue nervously paced around the small waiting area and breathed a sigh of relief when her brother and Lexie arrived. She ran over to them and hugged Lexie tightly. Axl patted Sue on the back.

"Is he okay?" Axl asked Sue. Sue shrugged her shoulders.

"We haven't been able to see him yet. The doctor is still examining him I guess and mom is with him." Sue explained. Sean remained seated and tried to focus his attention on a magazine but couldn't find the power to concentrate. _Mistake?_ he wondered as he replayed Sue's words in his head. He knew that getting married in Vegas was her idea, and she seemed completely on board with it up until now. He wondered what his own parents would say once they got a chance to talk. They didn't seem to be TOO upset, but there was so much happening at once that he didn't really know how to take in any of it. His thoughts were interrupted when a doctor appeared into view. Out of respect, Sean tossed the magazine aside and stood to shake the doctor's hand.

"Family of Mike Heck?" the doctor asked Sean. Sean hesitated and nodded in agreement. "Yes, I'm his...son-in-law." Sean responded. Sue, Lexie, and Axl rushed to stand next to Sean and listen to whatever the doctor had to say.

"Wait, did you say son-in-law?" Axl questioned and Sean brushed his comments away, allowing the doctor to speak.

"Your father is awake now. You can go and see him." He said.

"Is he okay? What happened?" Sue asked urgently. Sean placed his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to his side. The doctor led them to Mike's hospital room where Frankie and Brick were already standing next to Mike's side. Mike was hooked up to an IV drip and he weakly lifted one arm up to give a small wave to his family as they walked into the room.

"He had a minor heart attack. He is going to be fine and he already seems to be on the road to recovery. He's a lucky man." The doctor turned to look at Mike. "If it hadn't been for your son-in-law over here performing CPR on you right away, we might not be having this conversation right now." the doctor continued. Mike looked at Sean quizzically for a moment and Sean smiled awkwardly, nervously stuffing his hands into his pockets. Axl turned to look at Sean once again in confusion, but Lexie tugged on his arm and he refocused his attention on her.

"Thank you, doctor." Frankie pleaded and the doctor patted her on the back before stepping out of the room to give everyone a chance to talk. Sue rushed to Mike's side and gently placed her hands on his arm that wasn't hooked up to the IV.

"Oh my God, Dad I am soooooo sorry I didn't mean to do this to you and I can explain everything and you weren't supposed to find out that way and I can't believe I almost killed you." Sue carried on and Mike tried to 'shush' her.

"Sue...you didn't almost kill me." Mike stated simply with a small reassuring smile.

"Wh...what do you mean?" Sue asked, her eyes still filled with tears.

"Well, it turns out that my little 'episode' had nothing to do with you and everything to do with all of those years of supersizing my fries." Mike used what strength he had to poke Sue in the arm and she leaned down to give him a hug. Years ago, Frankie had practically begged him to go to the doctor for a check up and it was revealed that he had high cholesterol, but he never did make an effort to change his diet. Since he never put on weight, he assumed that he would be just fine but that turned out not to be the case. Mike explained this to Sue who nodded in understanding."Let me talk to your...boy..I mean hu...let me talk to Sean for a minute." Mike told Sue and she left his side. Sean went to stand near Mike and instinctively reached out his hand for a handshake but thought better of it.

"Yes, Mr. Heck, sir?" Sean asked while he waited to receive his fate.

"Thanks for um...saving my life." Mike said. Sean scrunched his face in surprise. He was definitely not expecting to receive a thank you.

"Uhhhh...you're welcome, sir but you really don't need to thank me...I'm really sorry that..." Sean stammered but Mike shook his head.

"Sean, I can't say I'm happy about this, in fact, I'm pretty pissed off...but I know that you make her happy...and I know that you will take care of her." Mike said earnestly.

"I will, sir, I really will, I promise." Sean replied. Mike nodded in acknowledgement. Sean began to step away but Mike grabbed onto his hand to pull him closer.

"I'm not done yet." Mike said. "If you're going to do this...being married...thing or whatever...just know that I still want what is best for her. I don't want her pushing her future aside to follow you around...I don't want her being tied down with a bunch of kids in her 20's preventing her from being successful...I want her to have...whatever she wants in life. She deserves at least that much. I don't want her to struggle the way Frankie and I have struggled all these years because we didn't plan ahead." Mike continued. Sean stepped back and took a deep breath before replying.

"I know, sir...I want what is best for her too and I promise that I won't stand in the way of her dreams." Sean turned to look at Sue, the love of his life, and she smiled sweetly back at him. Sean stepped away and returned to Sue's side, feeling like a weight had been lifted off of his chest. Sue held onto his hand and leaned closer to him.

"I'm sorry about earlier." Sue whispered into his ear.

"So we're okay?" Sean asked her and she nodded.

"Always...forever." Sue replied while she squeezed his hand. Sean wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to his side, breathing a huge sigh of relief.

"And you two." Mike said as he pointed at Axl and Lexie, waving his fingers at them in a 'come over here' motion. Hand in hand, Axl and Lexie walked to Mike's side and prepared for the worst. "What's the plan?" Mike asked them simply. Axl opened his mouth in surprise and turned to look at Lexie who was equally stunned.

"I...uhhhh...well funny thing is I was actually going to talk to you about this anyway soon and I never got the chance..." Axl stammered... "and I guess the dorkface kind of stole my thunder...but a few months ago I bought a ring and I wanted to ask Lexie...to marry me." Axl continued. Axl and Lexie had discussed this in depth after they had run off from the cookout. Lexie grinned widely and turned to look at Sue's reaction, but after the way the night had gone she had enough surprises already and wasn't paying much attention.

"Hmm." Mike mumbled and turned to look at his youngest son. "You're not getting married too, are you?" Brick looked up from his book and his eyes widened. "Who, me?" Brick questioned. "I'm just trying to get through high school. It's a real battlefield out there. Did you know that they are planning on limiting the number of students who can go into the library during study hall? What kind of life is that?" Brick questioned and everyone laughed and rolled their eyes at him. "What?" He questioned, not sure why everyone was laughing.

"Good. At least one of my kids isn't growing up too fast." Mike stated and he leaned back against the hospital bed. "Now if you don't mind...I think I need to get a little bit of rest." He said and he waved the kids out of the room. Frankie stayed by his side and softly ran her fingers through his hair.

"I wonder if Nancy would be willing to use the things we had planned for Axl's wedding. It's so hard being the boy mom I hope he lets me plan it." Frankie gushed, practically forgetting about the news that Sue had shared earlier that night and turning her attention to her eldest son. Mike groaned, shut his eyes and quickly drifted off to sleep.

As Sue, Sean, Axl and Lexie walked through the parking lot on the way back to their cars, Axl took Sean aside and began the questioning.

"Dude, did you seriously marry my _sister_? What is wrong with you? She's seriously going to bump your cool factor down at least 10 levels." Axl joked. Sean pushed him away and laughed.

"Whatever, Ax-man. You just wait. In 9 months you're going to end up with a little Axl to deal with and then the joke is going to be on you." Sean teased. "And no...we won't be your free babysitters. You're gonna have to pay." Sean continued.

"Will I at least get the Boss Co friends and family discount?" Axl asked.

"I don't know...you'll have to ask Darrin." Sean laughed and Axl rolled his eyes, imaging what would happen if he were to ask Darrin to babysit his future child, although Darrin already had a family of his own and everyone seemed to be alive and well. Not long after Sue's former best friend graduated high school, Carly and Darrin had gotten married and had two kids. He wondered how Darrin managed to pull his life together so quickly when Axl himself felt like he had a lot of growing up to do. He brushed away the thought and the two couples said their goodbyes and split up into their own cars.

Brick stood alone in the parking lot, holding his book and a vending machine ice cream cone.

"Sue? Axl?" He asked and only heard his own voice echoing in the dark. He had been left behind again. He threw up his arms in frustration and went back into the hospital.

A/N: I think that's a good place to stop for now. I hope you're okay with the direction of the story so far. I wanted to throw a little drama in there since life threatening events tend to bring everyone together. Part of the inspiration came from the episode "Role of a Lifetime" where the whole family was fighting, but they came together when Frankie's mom was in the hospital potentially suffering from a stroke.


	21. Chapter 21

A few days had gone by since the night of major revelations that indirectly landed Mike Heck in the hospital. Sean and Sue had completed moving into their new apartment in Lexie's building, Brad had made himself at home in Sue's old room. Sue even left behind a few of her favorite motivational posters for him to enjoy, but woofy dog, of course, went with her to her new home. Classes had already started and Sue spent the past few days going over her new textbooks and making last minute decorating decisions for her new apartment. Sue did whatever she could to make their tiny apartment a home. But she had new motivation for doing so because the previous day, Nancy and Ron had announced that they were coming by this evening to check out their new place and to have their dreaded "chat". With Sean busy in class and working in the clinic, it was up to Sue to get everything ready for tonight. Sue flipped through pages and pages Good Housekeeping magazine in search of the perfect recipe, but it seemed to be a bust. Sue was never really that good at cooking. She wondered if Nancy would be willing to teach her a few things in the kitchen. Or maybe she wouldn't be so willing so that Sean would have to run back to her for home-cooked meals. Sue settled on a "simple" recipe of Roast Chicken that claimed to be a guaranteed hit with guests. She jotted down the necessary ingredients and decided to stop by the store on her way home from class.

Sue nearly dropped all of her grocery bags on the way into the apartment when she spotted Sean in the middle of vacuuming the living room and smelled something delicious already cooking in the oven. The table that Sean brought from his old apartment was decorated with a white tablecloth, dinnerware, and a vase of white daisies in the center. Sean welcomed her with a smile and a wave before moving the coffee table aside to vacuum underneath it.

"What in the world?" Sue mused. "You didn't have to do all of this. I was going to take care of it!" Sue said and she raised her grocery bags in the air, then bent down to pick the dropped one off of the floor. Sean noticed her struggling and shut off the vacuum, quickly darting to her side to collect the bags from her.

"I told you, Suzy Q. We're in this together. I'm not making you get everything ready for my parents who decided to give us 24 hours notice of their visit. I guess we should consider ourselves lucky that we got any notice at all." He laughed and placed the bags on the counter, peaking inside to see what she had purchased.

"I guess you already beat me at making dinner. Whatever it is smells amazing! Since when are you able to cook?" Sue asked, wrapping her arms around his waist and reaching up to kiss him on the cheek.

"Since the barbecue place down the street started selling heat and serve beef brisket." Sean winked. "I'm really not as amazing as you seem to think I am." He chuckled and Sue playfully slapped him on the arm. He held onto both of her arms with gentle force. "Is that how you greet your new husband when you come home?" He joked. Sue giggled while she tried to pull away unsuccessfully before she gave up.

"No. But this is." Sue teased. She stood on her toes to kiss Sean sweetly on the lips. Sean loosened his grip on her arms and moved his hands onto her back and deepened the kiss. It didn't take long before the two of them were in the middle of a heated make out session on the couch, Sue's throw pillows with inspirational quotes tossed aside onto the freshly vacuumed carpet. They hadn't been living together for more than a few days, but they hadn't wasted any time now that they had what seemed like all of the privacy in the world. Sean's phone rang in his pocket and he grumbled in frustration when Sue pulled away. She looked at the clock and was shocked that so much time went by already. Sean read the text message from his mom. _We'll be there in an hour. We had to stop by the church and drop off some clothing donations. I hope you don't mind that I donated your green and white striped sweater. It was sitting in the closet for so long that I didn't think you would mind. See you soon. Love you._ Sean set his phone down on the coffee table and returned his attention to Sue, pulling her close to him once again and resuming the kiss. Sue giggled and tried to talk in between kisses. "As much...as I would love to continue this." Sue said when Sean hesitantly backed away. "We should probably finish getting things ready before they get here." Sue finished. Sean let out a deep breath and Sue noticed his 'excitement.' "Don't worry, I'll take care of THAT tonight." She teased as she leaned forward to kiss him gently on the neck one last time before getting up. Sean shook his head and gave her a seductive smile. "Have I mentioned that I absolutely love living with you?" Sean asked. Sue laughed as she finally put away the groceries that were still sitting on the counter.

Before they knew it, the dreaded knock on the door happened and Sue and Sean shared a look before each one made sure they were presentable enough for this occasion. It wasn't that they didn't want to see Sean's parents, but this was the first time that they were going to be visited as a married couple living in their own private apartment. Not to mention, they still hadn't talked about the elopement. Sean did try to bring up the topic over the phone, but Nancy wanted to wait until they could speak face to face. He wondered what they were going to say and hoped that they weren't too upset with him, but the fact that they were coming to visit at all seemed like a good sign. If they were really mad, they probably wouldn't visit...or maybe they would visit and yell at him? He hoped that they wouldn't make a scene in front of Sue. Although at the same time, if they did make a scene, it would only make Sue feel like a part of the family since they usually only argued behind closed doors. Donahues never liked to do anything to tarnish their reputation. Sue finally answered the door and saw Nancy and Ron standing on the other side. "Hi, Mrs. Donahue, Mr. Donahue!" Sue leaned in to give Nancy a hug.

"Hello, dear. And really, there's no need to be so formal, we are family now after all." Nancy said without a clear answer as to what Sue should call her now. Ron politely said hello and the two of them stepped in to greet their son. When they were taking off their coats, Sue mouthed to Sean 'Am I supposed to call her mom?' and Sean responded with a big shrug and a stupefied look on his face. Sue smiled because she always was amused by his overly expressive reactions to things...they really were quite similar. The group sat down at the kitchen table which already had all of the necessary food and drinks. Sean hoped that he could hurry this night along and get this conversation over with.

"Thank you for making dinner, I really wouldn't have minded bringing something from home. I know you two are so busy these days. I can hardly keep up with your lives." Nancy said, slightly worried that the food wouldn't be that good as she piled it onto her plate. Sue wasn't able to read her body language.

"I love barbecue! Can you pass the baked beans?" Ron asked his son and Sean eagerly complied. Sue could tell that Sean was nervous and she secretly patted his thigh under the table. Sean responded by placing his hand on hers and squeezing it briefly before putting his hands back into view.

"So tell me about school." Nancy said as she began to eat her plate of food, which was more tasty than she had expected. She detected that it most likely wasn't homemade, but she was pleased with the meal regardless. The group participated in casual small talk while they ate and the mood seemed to lighten as time progressed. When they were done eating, Sue and Nancy collected the dishes and Ron and Sean planted themselves in front of the tv. Nancy wanted to take advantage of this time alone with Sue, which made Sue incredibly nervous.

"So, you're a married woman now." Nancy said flatly as she began to wash the dishes in the sink.

"You don't have to wash those you know...you're the guest...and besides, we have a dishwasher." Sue pointed at the appliance. "Aaaand...yes...I guess I am." She said.

"I'll wash these by hand, it's better this way." Nancy said before taking a deep breath. "Sue...I was really upset when we all found out that you two eloped without telling anyone." Nancy said, her eyes remaining on the dishes. Sue picked up a towel and dried them as they were handed to her.

"I'm sorry, I hope you know that we weren't trying to hurt anyone...and we really love each other...we were going to get married eventually either way...I guess we just sort of wanted to do it our way." Sue replied. Nancy stopped washing the dishes and turned to face Sue. Sue noticed that Nancy's eyes were slightly wet.

"Did you do this because of Frankie and I?" Nancy asked directly. Sue was stunned. All of this time she expected that they would be angry with her, but she was starting to get the feeling that Nancy was actually feeling a little bit guilty.

"W...what?" Sue stammered. "I...no, of course not...I mean...well...maybe a little bit. Uhhh...let me start over. None of this was planned. We didn't come up with some sort of scheme to go to Vegas and get married behind everyone's backs. I didn't even know that Sean was even going to propose that weekend. I guess you could say that we may have been a little caught up in the moment but at the same time, I was feeling a little bit overwhelmed with all of the wedding things my mom kept sending me and I felt like all eyes were on us 100% of the time. We just wanted to get married because we are in love and we didn't need for it to be a big event in order for it to be special." Sue tried to be as polite as possible. Nancy let out a loud enough sigh that Sean and Ron both looked toward the kitchen to see what was going on. Sue wondered if Sean and Ron were having a similar conversation.

"I just wish you would have told us I suppose. Obviously you know by now that I think you two are perfect together and I am glad that you both see that too...I guess I will just have to save all of my wedding planning for the girls." Nancy tried to lighten the mood. Sue smiled and had a better idea.

"Not necessarily..." Sue began and Nancy tilted her head in interest. "Axl and Lexie are going to be getting married too, you know." Sue continued. Nancy widened her mouth in recognition and a huge smile spread across her face.

"You and Lexie are about the same size, aren't you? Ohhhh...that dress that I found would look so beautiful on Lexie. I need to call Frankie! Nancy stopped washing the dishes and rushed to get her phone. Sue couldn't help but laugh and Sean smiled upon noticing that his mom looked happy for what seemed like the first time that night. As Nancy rummaged through her purse, she came across something she nearly forgot about that night. "Oh!" Nancy shouted as she grabbed it and went back over to Sue. She held her hand open revealing a simple, antique silver wedding band. "This belonged to Sean's grandfather...rest his soul...Sean doesn't know but I've been saving it for him and I always hoped he would want to wear it when he got married. I did notice he isn't wearing anything on his finger..." Nancy suggested. Sue nodded furiously, a tear coming to her eye as she reached for the sentimental ring.

"Oh my gosh, Mrs. Donahue...I mean...Nancy?...I mean...it's perfect! He is going to love it!" Sue exclaimed as she gave Nancy a huge hug. Nancy squeezed her tightly and smiled brightly. Her excitement finally grasped the attention of Sean and Ron who got up from the couch and walked over to the women.

"What are you gals so excited about?" Ron asked, nudging Sean's arm. Sue looked at Nancy who gave her a reassuring nod and Sue stepped closer to Sean. She reached for his hands and he smiled as he took her hands in his, tilting his head slightly, unsure of what exactly was going on.

"Sean...I love you...so much. And I'm SOOOO happy that we are together." Sue said with a huge smile on her face.

"I love you too, Suzy Q." He said, leaning forward to give her a quick kiss on the cheek, feeling slightly embarrassed that his parents were standing right there staring at them. "What exactly is going on?" Sean asked, the smile never leaving his face. Sue revealed the ring in her hand and Sean's eyes widened in recognition. He had seen that ring countless times when his grandfather had worn it and knew that his mom held it close to her heart. "For me?" Sean asked, looking toward his mom for confirmation.

"Of course, honey. It would really mean a lot to me if you would wear it. My parents had such a long and happy life together and I want the same for you." Nancy replied earnestly. Sean's smile widened and he quickly walked over to his mom to give her a hug. "So you aren't mad?" Sean asked while they embraced. Nancy pulled back to look at her son in the eyes. "Let's just say...you're going to have to make it up to me by letting be plan you two a reception." She said with a smile.

"Deal." Sean agreed before returning to his new wife. Sean spread out his fingers, allowing Sue to slip the ring onto his bare ring finger. Sean took a moment to admire it. "It's perfect." He said and Sue nodded in agreement. Nancy took this opportunity to snap a few pictures of the newly weds adorned with their wedding rings and sent them off to Frankie with a caption that read _It's back on! We are planning a reception! I hope you still have the notes that I gave you. Call me!_ Sue and Sean felt like a huge burden had been lifted off of them. Even though Sue didn't have a chance to talk to her mom about the elopement, Frankie kind of just accepted it after realizing how short life really is as she watched her unconscious husband suffering on the ground the night they found out. The news of her firstborn getting married also softened the blow because she still had a chance to plan a wedding. After sharing dessert, Nancy and Ron said their goodbyes and congratulated the young couple on their future together.

"Well that went well." Sean mused, settling into the couch next to Sue. Sue leaned her head on his shoulder and rested her hand on his thigh. "Right? I was totally not expecting that." Sue replied with a laugh. Sean exhaled deeply and leaned down to whisper into Sue's ear. "You know what makes tonight even better?" He whispered and Sue turned to look at him with a smile.

"Does it have anything to do with where we left off earlier?" Sue teased, tracing her finger on his thigh.

"It's like we share a brain." Sean chuckled and pulled Sue close for a passionate kiss.

A/N: Sorry it took so long for an update! Not sure what is up next, I kind of just go with the flow of wherever the story takes me. If there's anything you'd like to see or if you have ideas to share, feel free to post them in the reviews. Thanks for reading!


	22. Chapter 22

Sue stared out the window of the library, admiring the brightly colored leaves that gently left their branches and floated to the ground. It was the middle of October and the weather was beginning to get colder, but she always loved the Fall and everything that came along with it, from pumpkins to leaves, to the smell of freshly baked apple pie that she hoped to receive from Nancy Donahue. So much had happened over the past few months and while it did take a lot of compromise and a lot of patience, Sue was happier than ever. She was happily married to the love of her life, although they were both very busy, they did their best to spend as much time together as they could. Their families came around when it came to their new marriage and Mike's health was improving every day. Nancy and Frankie were constantly busy planning both Sue and Sean's reception party and Axl and Lexie's wedding. After a doctor's appointment back in early September, it was confirmed that Lexie's pregnancy was actually a false alarm. Even though she had adjusted to the idea of starting a family, Lexie took it as a sign to be a little more careful and to focus more on finishing school. Mike had told Axl that he dodged a bullet. He knew from experience how hard it was to start a family at such a young age and he never wanted to see his kids struggle the way him and Frankie did for so long, but he was happy that he found someone to settle down with and was content with the idea of him getting married. Even Brad began dating someone new a few weeks ago that he met online through a local dating website. Sue was having a hard time focusing on her assignment and decided to head to the coffee shop to get a chai latte. She was feeling excited that the weekend was approaching because her and Sean had planned to go home for the first time since classes started because Nancy wanted to go over a few things for their upcoming reception. Nancy reluctantly agreed to schedule it for Christmas Eve as Sue and Sean wanted, marking the one year anniversary of their first kiss. The wind picked up as Sue walked back to her apartment and the temperature had grown colder than she expected that day. She began to start jogging, being careful not to spill her latte when she slammed into a familiar body as she rounded the corner, dropping the latte to the ground. The hot liquid spread across her thrift store suede boots, leaving behind dark stains.

"Whoa there, in a hurry to get somewhere? You okay?" Sean asked as he reached into his pocket to pull out a pile of gauze pads to help Sue wipe up the mess. "Sorry I don't have any napkins." He laughed. Sue gratefully accepted the gauze pads and dabbed at the stains on her shoes.

"Ugh, I was going to wear these this weekend. I guess I'll just have to find something else to wear. I'm fine...but wait, what are you doing here? I thought you had to work?" Sue wondered. Sean's schedule was always so unpredictable that she had a hard time keeping up with it. Sean smiled widely as he picked up the now empty cup, loading the soaked gauze pads into it and throwing it away.

"I was, but one of my classmates needed to pick up a few extra hours in the clinic and I took the opportunity to escape early so we can get a jump on the weekend! Sorry I didn't call, I wanted to surprise you at home and I was just going to do a little studying until you got there. Are you going back to the apartment now? It looks like we have pretty good timing now...minus the latte incident." He laughed. Sue was relieved that they would have some time alone before they had to make there way back to Orson and her excitement was obvious on her face.

"Yes! Let's get home!" Sue shouted excitedly as they locked hands and walked to the apartment.

It wasn't long until Sue had whipped them up something to eat. Over the past two months, she created a binder of successful recipes that she had found and tested out. She did have to ask Nancy for a few lessons and Nancy eagerly sent her videos of herself preparing a few dishes. Sue even suggested that Nancy start a blog with her cooking videos but she told her that they were family secrets and didn't want to share them with the world. Tonight, Sue cooked pork tenderloin and mashed potatoes and Sean happily gobbled it up. He was always willing to be the guinea pig for her recipes, even if they weren't all successful. After dinner, Sean cleared the dishes and stacked them into the dishwasher. After, he sat down on the couch and unbuckled his jeans, letting out a deep sigh.

"That was so good Suzy Q. My stomach feels like it's going to explode." He chuckled and Sue gently pat his stomach as she sat down next to him. "I can see that!" She joked as she pointed at his unbuttons pants. It didn't take long for them to grow comfortable with one another now that they lived on their own. They seemed to settle into married life way more easily than either of them ever expected. They spent the rest of the night binge-watching Netflix and cuddling on the couch. The next day, they made their way to Orson.

* * *

Sean and Sue met Nancy, Ron, Frankie, Mike, Axl, and Lexie at Fountains restaurant upon Frankie's suggestion because she had coupons from the mail. Sean and Sue were the first ones to arrive. Sean offered to go in the restaurant to reserve a table for 8 and Sue waited outside for the rest of the group to arrive. As she waited, a few other couples made their way into the restaurant. A small sedan parked on the other side of the lot and Sue's jaw nearly hit the ground when she saw who stepped out of the car. A young couple walked in Sue's direction, the man's arm around the woman's shoulders. It was Darrin and Carly. It had been a few years since she saw either of them because her and Carly didn't talk much after Carly started dating Sue's ex. Sue wasn't necessarily angry, but something about it caused them to drift apart. Plus with Sue being away in Gumford much of the time, she didn't run into residents of Orson that often unless she was home for the weekend. A smile of recognition spread across Darrin's face when he got closer and Sue awkwardly bit her lip and waved to the couple.

"Heeeeeey Darrin, Carly." Sue tried to sound happy but a hint of awkwardness was obvious in her voice. Her and Darrin parted on good terms, but it was still weird to see him face to face since they had once been in love...even if it was only a high school romance. "Hey Sue!" Darrin said cheerfully as he leaned in to give her a hug. Carly hugged her too and then stepped back with a small smile. "What are you doing here?" Darrin asked.

"Oh...well...I'm here with Sean and we're waiting for our families to get here for dinner. He just stepped inside for a minute..." Sue explained. She didn't know if Darrin knew that her and Sean were together and didn't really feel like bringing it up right now.

"Sean's here?" Darrin asked curiously. "I haven't seen him in forever! Is Axl coming too? It looks like we're going to have a Boss Co. Reunion." Darrin laughed. Carly tugged on his arm and he turned to face her.

"I'm just going to go put our name on the list and use the ladies room." Carly said nervously. Darrin nodded and Carly headed inside.

"So how have you been? How are the kids?" Sue asked. She was glad that Darrin had moved on and that she didn't have to hire a babysitter every time she wanted to go out for a dinner date.

"Oh...they are fine...exhausting but it's fine." Darrin sighed. He looked around to make sure no one was within hearing range of their conversation. "You know, Sue...I really feel stupid for proposing to you in high school. If I would have just kept my mouth shut maybe you and I would have been here on a date tonight." Darrin said. Sue's eyes widened and she struggled to come up with something to say.

"Well...that's just the way life goes I guess and so on and so forth and what have you." Sue laughed nervously and twirled her hair. Darrin took a step closer.

"I still think about you...us..." Darrin said as he gazed into her eyes. "I never thought I'd have a chance to be alone with you again but...aww hell." Darrin said as he stepped forward and crashed his lips onto hers. Completely stunned, Sue groaned angrily and shoved him away.

"What the hell are you _doing_?" Sue demanded. "You're MARRIED. AND SO AM I." She shouted as she held up her hand, revealing her wedding ring. She crossed her arms over her chest and stood as far away as possible from him on high alert.

"You are?" Darrin asked sadly. "To who?" He asked. Sue rubbed her arm, partly because it was cold outside and partly because she was still in shock and didn't know what was going on. Just then, Sean stepped into view and stood next to Sue's side, wrapping his arm around her and kissing her gently on the cheek.

"Hey, Suzy Q! You'll never guess who I ran into in there!" Sean started to say when he noticed Darrin standing and gawking at them, his mouth hanging open in surprise. "Oh...I guess you already know. Hey buddy, how's it going?" Sean asked as he instinctively reached his left hand out for a handshake, revealing his wedding band. When he didn't receive Darrin's hand in response, he shoved his hand in his pocket and returned to Sue's side.

"Are you kidding me?" Darrin asked Sue. Sue just shrugged and smiled awkwardly. Sean knew Sue well enough to sense the tension and he pulled her closer to his side, wondering what had happened before he arrived.

"Oh...I guess the news hasn't made it all the way across town yet." Sean chuckled. "Sorry I didn't tell you, dude. I thought you would have heard the news by now and honestly, I didn't think you would care since it was so long ago and you've clearly moved on with Carly..." Sean continued. Sue remained silent, feeling horribly guilty about the kiss, even though she found it completely revolting and she promptly ended it. Her heart belonged to Sean now and even though this situation was terrible, she felt a glimmer of happiness that she felt absolutely nothing when Darrin kissed her. Sue noticed Axl's car pull in and him and Lexie headed towards them. "Darrin? What are you doing here?" Axl asked. Lexie cringed because Sue had told her everything that happened with Darrin in high school. She moved to sympathetically stand next to Sue and suddenly Sue found herself sandwiched between Sean and Lexie, almost as if they were trying to protect her.

"Seriously dude?" Darrin shouted at Axl. "You gave me hell for dating Sue and you're just completely fine with THIS?" Darrin pointed at Sean and Sue.

"Heh...yeah well...what can I say...things change...people change. I'd rather not think about who is with the dorkface." Axl defended.

"Axl!" Sue shouted angrily. Axl just rolled his eyes.

"Sue, you can't deny that you didn't feel something just now when I kissed you." Darrin said stupidly. Axl and Sue shared a look and Sean let out a loud huff that Sue had never heard before.

"You WHAT?" Axl said, stepping forward in a threatening manner. Darrin took a step back. Sean gave Sue the saddest look that she had ever seen, but that was quickly replaced with rage when he turned back to Darrin. Sue tugged at his sleeve, silently begging him to calm down but it was a lost cause. In no time, Axl had Darrin pinned up against the wall, waiting for an explanation.

"I still love you, Sue Heck!" Darrin shouted while looking at Sue. That was all Sean needed to step forward and punch Darrin in the face. Darrin slid against the wall, down to the ground in shock. He had never seen Sean get into a physical altercation and it completely caught him off guard. Sue and Lexie gasped and Sue quickly ran over to Sean, pulling him away from Darrin. "Can we just go inside?" Sue begged. Sean shook his fist in an effort to shake off the pain, took a second to fix his hair and placed his arm back around Sue's shoulder as he led them inside. Before the door closed, Sue leaned back to speak to Darrin one last time.

"Actually, it's Sue DONAHUE." She corrected and Sean gave her a huge grin as they stepped into the restaurant.

Axl kicked Darrin's leg before dragging Lexie into the restaurant. "That's for the time you punched Sue in the face." Axl said as they walked inside.

Darrin stayed on the ground, feeling defeated as Carly came out of the restaurant to tell him that their table was ready. She noticed the bruising starting to appear around his eye and bent down to ask him what had happened.

"Let's just go somewhere else." Darrin said as he got up and walked back to his car.

A/N: The first appearance of Darrin! I don't know if he will make a return in the future, but I wanted to give Sean a chance to stand up for Sue and defend their relationship. Also, I always thought Carly was kind of a bad friend towards the end of the show, abandoning Sue to hang out with popular people, making out with boys in front of her, etc. It's all about Karma lol. As for Lexie, I wanted her to have a 'growing up' experience but didn't want her to end up getting married just because she 'had' to. I hope you enjoy this chapter!


	23. Chapter 23

It was the second week of December and Sue surprisingly found herself on a trip to Notre Dame. About a month ago, invitations were sent out for their wedding reception which came as a complete shock to some of Sean's Fraternity buddies. His one friend, Charlie, insisted that he bring Sue up to Notre Dame so that proper introductions could be made. It just so happened that they were throwing a reunion party that same weekend. After rearranging their schedules, they managed to make time to take the trip. As they approached Sean's old Frat house, Sue took one last look down at her dress and decided that she looked pretty good that night. Luckily, Lexie loaned her form fitting navy blue dress that showed off Sue's delicate frame. She paired it with a pair of black booties that were also loaned to her. She wore a black wool peacoat over her shoulders to protect herself from the cold winter wind.

"So, Charlie said that pretty much everyone is going to be here. I am soooo glad you agreed to come! I just hope things don't get too crazy. I only went to a few of these parties in college and let's just say...some people can get out of hand." Sean said as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He hadn't talked to Sue much about his college days because he wasn't proud of some of the things he had done back then.

"Relax, it's not like I've never been to a college party before...although, the one time I did go to one I only went so that I could see..." She paused, remembering that she had just gone to the party to see Tyler, the safety cart guy who she thought she had a crush on. Sean stopped and turned to look at her, waiting for her to continue.

"See what?" Sean finally asked when she didn't finish. Sue smiled bashfully and squeezed his hand.

"More like who...there was a guy I thought I was interested in at the time. Okay, I was interested in the safety cart guy. I told you about him already. But it doesn't matter now. I only wish I wouldn't have asked him to go to the Chancellor's ball because I would have preferred to go with you when you asked me." Sue explained. Sean laughed.

"It's all good, Suzy Q. We're together now. That's all that matters." He leaned down to kiss her hand and then pulled her toward the front door of the fraternity. They heard music blaring already and Sean looked at Sue. "Are you sure you want to do this? We could just go get some coffee or..." Sean said.

"I want to meet your friends." Sue said calmly and she carefully opened the door to peak inside. Sean smiled and the couple stepped inside hand in hand. The party was already in full swing. The frat house was loaded with college students and Alumni. Red Solo cups were scattered around the room and a beer pong table was set up in the center of the living room. Sue noticed the faint odor of alcohol and sweat in the air and began to second guess her confidence. It only took about 5 minutes for Charlie to notice their arrival and he eagerly approached them.

"Sean! My man! It's been too long!" Charlie shouted as he embraced Sean in a 'bro-hug.'

"Hey, dude. How's it going?" Sean asked as he stepped back. He wrapped his around casually around Sue's shoulder and pulled her closer. "This is Sue! Sue, this is Charlie." Sean said proudly and Sue waved awkwardly.

"The _wife_." Charlie joked before extending his hand. "Nice to meet you!" Charlie said politely and Sue shook his hand.

"Nice to meet you, too." Sue smiled. She awkwardly extended her hand, unsure if she was supposed to shake his hand or give him a hug. Charlie solved the problem by pulling her in for a hug. When they broke about, Charlie pulled Sean slightly to the side as they began to catch up on each other's lives. Sean looked to Sue for approval and she waved him off so that he could chat with his friend. She took the opportunity to give herself a mini tour of the frat house and noticed the table of refreshments. She walked over and noticed a bowl of punch. She looked around to make sure no one was watching and she took a sniff. She backed away and waved the smell away from her nose. She had alcohol before but the punch was clearly spiked with heavy liquor. She decided to play it safe and chose a bottle of beer instead. She supposed she inherited the taste for beer from her parents who always had a 6 pack stashed in the fridge.

Meanwhile, Sean and Charlie stood near the living room catching up and reminiscing about their college days even though it wasn't even that long ago that they attended school together.

"Dude, I can't believe you're _married._ I really never imagined you settling down so early especially since you're always so focused on school." Charlie said. Sean nodded.

"Yeah, I can't believe it either, man. I wasn't really planning it, it just sort of happened. But it's all good, we're happy and everything has been great so far." Sean explained.

"Well, I'm happy for you. But I should warn you..." Charlie pointed in the direction of the kitchen. "Gretchen somehow found out that you were coming here today and she was the first one to get here." Charlie continued. Sean's eyes widened as he recognized the familiar girl standing near Sue at the beverage table. Gretchen was one of the mistakes he made in college that he didn't want Sue to find out about. In fact, no one in his family knew about her. One night at one of the famous fraternity parties, Sean had too much to drink and had a drunken make out session with her. After that night, she acted like she was his girlfriend and wouldn't leave him alone despite him explaining over and over again that it was just a mistake. She even went as far as to tell other people about their 'relationship.' He had been under a lot of pressure during his senior year and decided to have a few drinks to give himself a much needed break. Little did he know that it would cause him even more stress. He wanted to get up and pull Sue away from her, but it was already too late. He saw them already having what seemed to be a lighthearted conversation. Maybe she had finally changed. He took a deep breath and tried to refocus on what Charlie was saying, but he couldn't help but keep glancing over at Sue.

Gretchen was a beautiful brunette haired woman. Her hair had perfectly highlighted waves that extended down her back. Her brown eyes sparkled despite the dim lighting of the frat house.

"Wait, you said you're from Orson?" Gretchen asked as her and Sue exchanged small talk.

"Yeah...you've probably never heard of it...it's a pretty small..." Sue began to explain when Gretchen cut her off.

"My boyfriend is from there. Sean Donahue. Do you know him? He's really great. Actually he's right over there!" Gretchen trailed on and waved casually in Sean's direction with a smile and a wink. Sean was suddenly aware that something wasn't right, but he had no doubt once he saw the rage filled expression on Sue's face. He wasn't sure if he had ever really seen an angry side to Sue. But now that he had, he never wanted to see it again. It was clear that Gretchen was either still delusional or was simply looking for revenge.

"WHAT?!" Sue screamed and stared directly at Sean with her mouth gaping wide open. The panicked look on Sean's face confirmed that her biggest nightmare was coming true and she felt sick to her stomach. Luckily over the past few years, she was able to prevent herself from becoming physically ill. She slammed her empty beer bottle down on the table and quickly ran out the door. Instinctively, Sean chased after her and caught up to her on the front sidewalk. He grabbed her shoulder and spun her around so that she was facing him.

"Sue, whatever she said in there was probably not true. You have to let me explain!" He demanded and Sue remained silent, looking down at the ground in front of her feet. She was still angry, but his hands on her shoulders had a slightly calming effect on her. She let out a deep sigh. "Sue, please look at me." Sean begged and she reluctantly raised her face so that their eyes met. Sean moved his hands to her cheeks and his warm skin felt comforting on this chilly December evening. "It's a long story, but you need to know everything." Sean let out a sharp breath which was visible in the cool air. "Senior year there was this party...remember, I told you things sometimes got out of hand." Sean nervously scratched the back of his neck. "One night before midterms I was just totally stressed out. I came to one of the parties and had a little too much to drink. You know how it is." Sue reluctantly nodded her head in agreement, remembering a time when she had too much to drink. She vowed from that day on never to drink that much again. Before Sean could continue his story, Gretchen appeared on the front porch.

"Hey, Sean, babe! You can't leave already! We haven't even had a chance to roll around in sheets!" Gretchen shouted and shook her hips to demonstrate. The sick feeling suddenly returned in Sue's stomach and she pushed away from Sean. She turned to face him.

"You told me you never...omg! I never would have if I knew...how could you not TELL me?!" Sue angrily whispered so that no one else could hear her but Sean. Before he had a chance to explain that this was all just one big misunderstanding, she stormed off.

"What is WRONG with you?!" Sean demanded of Gretchen who just manically laughed on the porch, bending over to slap herself on the knee.

"I told you that you would be mine forever, Seany-boy." Gretchen smiled and Sean made a disgusted face before turning to follow Sue, who had somehow disappeared.

"SUE?!" Sean yelled several times down the abandoned sidewalk. It was getting dark now and the tall trees that lined the walkway blocked the light from the roadside lanterns. He spent the next hour frantically calling and texting Sue with no response. He decided to wait in his parked car for her to eventually show up so that they could go home. They didn't plan on spending the night at Notre Dame, she he assumed she would come back eventually after she had time to cool off...or would she? This was the most serious fight they had ever had and he didn't even get a chance to explain himself. It all happened so fast that he was dumbfounded and lost for words.

Sue wandered around the campus alone, unsure of where she was going or what she was supposed to do. A few guys had made some lewd comments as she walked by in her flattering dress, which initially made her feel attractive but later, she felt unsafe and decided that it was time to go somewhere safe. She considered going back to the car and letting Sean talk, but she was not prepared to hear what he had to say. The only thing she could think about was their intimate time together and how it had somehow lost meaning now that she knew, or thought she knew, that she wasn't Sean's first. She imagined him with the prettier girl and it was heart wrenching. She knew that he was older than her and he could have easily been more experienced, but it was the 'lie' that really hurt. About an hour later, she found herself at the bus station, purchasing the last ticket for the night back to Orson. She thought about going home, but didn't want to explain anything to her family. She decided to instead go to Brad's house directly where she was welcomed with open arms. His parents were fortunately out of town so they had the place to themselves. Sue shared the details of her evening with Brad and he did his best to reassure her.

"Sue, I know you're upset but get real for a second. Do you REALLY think that Sean DONAHUE is capable of pulling off such a devious scheme? It's so obvious that he loves you." Brad told Sue as he took a bite of ice cream. The two of them frequently aired grievances with comfort food so they always made sure to be fully stocked in case anything came up. Sue sighed.

"I know he does, Brad...and he's been texting me all night." She showed her phone to Brad as he scrolled through the list of one sided messages. "He says it's just a misunderstanding and wants to talk to me in person. I just don't know what to do." Sue slammed her face into a decorative throw pillow.

"Wait, you haven't even told him where you are? He's completely freaking out. You can't just let him think you've gone missing. I swear if I see your face on a milk carton I will be the first one to draw a hideous mustache over your pretty little face." Brad put her phone down on the coffee table.

"Serves him right for lying to me. Do they even put faces on milk cartons anymore?" Sue defended. Brad rolled his eyes at his best friend.

"But did he lie? Come on, Sue. If you don't tell him where you are, I will." Brad demanded.

"Fine, okay. I'll tell him DAD." Sue mocked and Brad casually returned to eating his ice cream. Sue picked up her phone and sent a quick text that simply said _I'm at Brad's._ She knew that Sean would be there in a matter of hours, depending on if he was still at Notre Dame or if he had gone back to Gumford without her. She noticed the time on her phone and realized that she should get some sleep before she had a long conversation with Sean. Meanwhile, Sean raced back to Orson to fix things as soon as possible.


End file.
